


As the World Caves In

by SpicyDinosaurAge



Category: Fallout 4
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Blood and Gore, Canon-Typical Violence, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Eventual Romance, F/F, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Period-Typical Homophobia, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Romance, Slow Burn, Survivor Guilt, bro you thought my previous stories were slow burn? HA, idiots to lovers, it gets deep folks, the slowest burn, this is mega slow burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-25
Updated: 2020-11-21
Packaged: 2021-03-07 02:42:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 24,037
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26099602
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpicyDinosaurAge/pseuds/SpicyDinosaurAge
Summary: 200 years after the "end of the world," as some would call it, the sole survivor of Vault 111 wakes to a post-apocalyptic Boston.  New beasts roamed what Nora once called home, and nothing was how she left it. With the help of fellow survivors of the War, Nora looks for her kidnapped son and the man that took him. She'll find, however, that the world became more complicated than she could have ever dreamed while she was frozen and forgotten in the depths of Vault 111.
Relationships: Female Sole Survivor/Piper Wright
Comments: 50
Kudos: 50





	1. Awake

**Author's Note:**

> Hiya! It sure has been a hot minute since y'all have heard from me. I promise, I'm alive and well. I'm gonna address what's going on at the end notes, so feel free to read those. Or don't, you do you. :)
> 
> So, let's briefly go over what's going on with this new story. As of right now, like my other stories, this is just a retelling of a video game, Fallout 4, in my own way. I'll also address some concerns I'm sure a lot of you are going to have in a post on my tumblr. Just be patient, please. 
> 
> This particular story will cover all of the main storyline of Fallout 4, and I can assure you there will not be a part two. Because of that, this will be longer, which may be a little weird. It's gonna be here for the long haul, folks. 
> 
> I hope you all enjoy, and I'll explain more either in the end notes or in a post.

" _ Error. Cryo pod malfunction. Emer... ...lease ...tivated. _ "

With a gasp that stung her lungs, Nora opened her bleary eyes. She blinked several times to adjust to the light, coughing as she did so. Why the hell was it so  _ cold _ ?

Not really knowing what she was doing or where she was, Nora put a hand against the icy glass in front of her, her brow furrowing. "What the hell..."

" _ Warn...g. Cryo pod mal...ion. Emergency ...lease act...ated. _ "

The door keeping Nora in what she assumed was a cryo pod suddenly opened, causing her to tumble out and land on her hands and knees. She hissed as she landed, feeling the scrape of the concrete against her palms. 

Nora took a deep breath as she looked up. Her heart sunk to her stomach as she saw who was in the cryo pod in front of her. She squeezed her eyes shut and lowered her head, not wanting to look at what they had done to him. 

It had all happened so fast. The man and the doctor had entered the vault, opened Nate's pod, and... and... 

Tears stung Nora's eyes. She should have done something,  _ anything _ . If she hadn't been so cowardly, she could have prevented Shaun's kidnapping and Nate's death. 

It felt like something cracked in Nora's chest as she fully remembered what had happened. "Shaun..."

Everything she held dear had been taken from her in a moment's notice. As she stood slowly and shakily, Nora's hands clenched into fists. Her breathing was still uneven and her limbs felt too weak, but she needed to move. She needed to get out of this damn vault. 

"I'll find them," Nora mumbled. She looked at Nate, trying to ignore the hole in his head and the blood splattered behind him. "I'll find them, and I swear I'll make them pay."

Nora coughed as she limped forward. She wrapped one arm around her stomach, hunched slightly. She couldn't tell if it was hunger she was feeling or sickness at the scene she was leaving behind. Maybe a bit of both. 

The same warning that had woken her up was cycling through the overhead speakers—something about a malfunction. 

Nora looked around, panting as she made her way through the destroyed vault. Skeletons were scattered in every room.

_ Skeletons? _ Nora thought.  _ What happened? Where is everyone? _

As she continued walking, not really knowing where she was going, she heard the sounds of something scuttling across the floor. She wondered how rats could survive down here this long. 

However, as Nora turned a corner, she realized it wasn't rats she heard. What looked like giant  _ roaches _ were in front of her, moving about. Her eyes widened as she quickly went around the same corner, her back pressed against the wall. 

If she thought normal-sized cockroaches were scary, these were nightmarish. She could still hear them moving, but they didn't seem to notice she was there. 

Nora glanced around, looking for something to use to defend herself. She wished this was like those old games were the player could sneak passed enemies in plain sight. She really didn't know how to proceed from here, and she didn't think she was in any fighting state. After all, she had just woken up from what she can only assume was a decade or two long nap. 

_ I can just squish them, right? _ Nora thought as she leaned her head against the cool wall.  _ Oh, God, what if they fly, too? What am I doing? _

Nora closed her eyes to think. She had been a lawyer, for God's sake. She had defended criminals and other wrong-doers without breaking a sweat. She could take down a few bugs. 

Probably. 

Upon opening her eyes, Nora glanced around. The only semi-weapon she saw was a broken desk leg. Taking a deep breath, she left her safe spot by the wall and grabbed the leg. 

The cockroaches, of course, saw her. One of them looked almost puzzled as it stared at her. Nora could do nothing but stare back. Its beady eyes seemed to stare into her soul. 

That was before it lunged at her, scaring the absolute shit out of Nora and making her scream as she swung her makeshift weapon like a bat. She hit the cockroach, smacking it against a wall. The others made strange noises as they attacked her as well. 

Nora swung the leg at one of the roaches, smashing it into the ground. The one that was left bit at her leg. Nora danced back quickly, raising the leg once more. The last was bigger than the other two, but Nora was ready to get out of the vault and figure out what the hell she was going to do. 

Nora brought the desk leg down on the remaining roach several times. She only stopped once its buggy guts were on the vault's dusty floors. 

Taking a deep breath, Nora gripped the desk leg tighter. She continued forward, something new in her veins that made her determined to leave despite whatever the fuck just happened. 

Why were there giant roaches? Were they part of the vault? Are they the reason everyone was dead?

No, that couldn't have been true. Sure, Nora had been somewhat terrified, but she had taken them down without much difficulty. Unless there were once hundreds of them, they couldn't have been why skeletons littered the ground. 

Nora entered a room with a large, circular desk. There was a skeleton in a lab coat slumped in the only chair near a terminal. 

She made her way to the terminal, setting the desk leg on the desk. She browsed it first, looking to see if maybe it had a map or something similar. There were files she skimmed through, brows coming together as she read. She sighed as she closed the terminal, standing. She would just need to wander until she eventually found the elevator or she died. 

Nora made her way to the only other door in the room. She had to assume she was going the right way. Otherwise... well. It just wouldn't do to be pessimistic when she was the only living human inside the vault. 

The door slid open, revealing another room that looked like a power room. Bolts of lightning shot from two large sources of power. One bolt killed a giant roach that was walking in between them. 

Deciding she shouldn't suffer the same fate as the roach, Nora stayed on the little walkway. She made her way around the power sources successfully. She could almost feel her hair standing on end, even as she left. 

Leaving the power room led Nora down a familiar hallway. She remembered walking down the same hallway with Nate and Shaun like it was yesterday. But, by the looks of the skeletons everywhere, it had been some time since that happened. 

Nora continued forward, her heart feeling a little lighter. At least she now knew she was almost out. Well, that was if the elevator even worked. 

She finally walked into the room with the vault door. There were a few more bones scattered, but the one she saw first was a body laying by what looked like a control panel. Water dripped from the ceiling, creating small puddles around the room. 

Nora made her way to the control panel. Beside the body on the floor was a PipBoy. Nora had only heard about them before. 

She crouched, picking up the PipBoy as she did so. She turned it over in her hands, wiping her thumb across the screen. It turned on as she did. A loading screen appeared, along with Vault-Tec's logo. 

Nora was surprised it even still worked. But, knowing what she did about Vault-Tec, it didn't surprise her. If they could make vaults like the one she was in without many people knowing, they could make a PipBoy with a long battery life. 

Nora wrapped the PipBoy onto her left forearm. It sat there comfortably, almost like it was made just for her. 

The control panel wasn't too confusing, but it needed power. Nora glanced at her PipBoy, noticing a wire that looked like it would fit into the control panel. Surprisingly, it did. Maybe after everything she had been through, she was finally gaining some luck. 

Words appeared on her newfound PipBoy. The text scrolled until finally, another loading screen appeared.  _ Unlocking main door. Please remain patient. _

The sound of metal moving made Nora lift her head from her PipBoy. Steam blew out from the door to the vault. The door disconnected from where it had been sealed against the wall and moved back. With the help of other metal, it rolled to the side, allowing access into the elevator room. 

The walkway extended, moving into the room the vault door had sealed off. Nora took the wire out of the control panel and hopped over the railing. She glanced back before entering the elevator room. 

The elevator was rusted, and Nora wasn't even sure if it still worked. The shaft seemed to creak with every slight movement she made toward it. 

_ It's better than nothing, _ Nora thought. The elevator was her only hope of leaving. Without trying, she would be doomed to die down in the vault. 

She refused to let Vault-Tec be the one to kill her. She'd always thought she'd die by Nate's side as their wrinkled hands gripped each other. It seemed like a peaceful way to go.

No. Nora wouldn't let herself die down in the vault. Nate was no longer an option to die beside, but she wouldn't join the nameless bodies. 

Nora stepped into the elevator uneasily. The door slowly shut in front of her, stuttering as it lowered. 

As the door to the elevator closed, Nora took one last look at the silent vault in front of her. That day, however long ago it was, they had gone to the vault in hopes of surviving the seemingly sudden nuclear attacks. They had barely made it, and if this had been a normal vault, they all would have bonded over their near-death experiences. 

But that wasn't the way things had gone. They had all been cryogenically frozen for God knows how long. And Nate had been killed by some bald man with a scar over his eye, and Shaun... 

Whatever it took, Nora would find Shaun. She wouldn't let them get away with this. Shaun was  _ her baby _ , the only thing she had left of her old life. Even if it killed her, she would find him. 

The elevator shook as it began to rise. Nora glanced up, squinting as the door above her opened and sunlight shone through. Nora raised a hand to her face, though that didn't do much to block the sunlight. 

After just a few moments, the elevator stopped, hissing as it did so. Nora blinked to adjust to the new light. 

And as her eyes focused on her surroundings, she could only think of three words. 

"What the  _ fuck _ ?" 


	2. The Stranger

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm excited for this sdkj. 
> 
> So, late Friday/Saturday is when this will be updated, hopefully. Bear with me while I get used to my schedule :)
> 
> Enjoy!

After being a journalist for so long, it no longer surprised Piper when she was locked out or blacklisted in cities and towns around the Wasteland. However, she  _ did _ think Mayor McDonough was going overboard with this one. 

Some of it might have been her fault. Recently, she had published a piece trying to expose the mayor of Diamond City. He was a fraud, after all, but nobody seemed to believe her. The people of Diamond City refused to believe what was right in front of them. 

Overall, though, it was mostly the Institute's fault. That's who she was keen on blaming, anyway. 

Also known as the Boogeyman of the Wasteland, the Institute took people in the night and replaced them with synthetic look-alikes, and she had a feeling the same had happened to the mayor. Either that, or she really was going crazy with these theories. 

She could almost remember a time when Mayor McDonough wasn't always trying to kick her out of Diamond City. She couldn't even remember when he had changed. She just knew that one day he seemed different, and since then, her city was never the same. 

Piper sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose as she walked away from the gate keeping Diamond City citizens safe. She had found that moving away from her problems to think seemed to help her cope with them. 

"...you hear?" a guard was saying as Piper walked passed them. "Johnson said he saw a  _ Vault Dweller _ ."

Piper paused.  _ A Vault Dweller? Didn't those guys stay underground, away from the radiated world above? _

The other guard scoffed. "Yeah, right. Those guys never come to the surface. And why would they? It's a mess up here."

"I'm just telling you what Johnson said. Even said they might've been a threat. Had one of those laser guns, too."

Piper shook her head and continued forward. It would be a good story, if it were true. She had come to realize in all her years that Vault Dwellers were about as rare as a Deathclaw in a dress. As in, no one had ever really seen one. 

They stayed underground in their vaults, sealed away from the outside world. Piper had even heard some vaults  _ shoot _ trespassers. If there was a Vault Dweller hanging around, they shouldn't be messed with. Chances were that a Vault Dweller couldn't do much damage, but without knowing what was going on below the surface, it was better to be safe than sorry. 

Who even knew what kind of weird experiments they were conducting down in the vaults? Maybe Vault Dwellers were some kind of mutant hybrid that was immune to bullets. Maybe they were human, just like her. 

Shaking her head slightly to clear her thoughts, Piper stared out at the setting sun on the horizon. She would need to get back inside Diamond City soon. She didn't quite know how yet, but she would figure that out.

She supposed her only choice was to talk to Danny Sullivan about it.

With a sigh that was more dramatic than it should have been, Piper turned toward Diamond City. She was determined to get back in.

After all, it seemed a little strange to lock her out over an article. Maybe it had hit too close to home for the mayor. And if that was the case, then Piper was on the right track.

Admittedly, besides annoying Danny into letting her back inside the gate, Piper had no plan. If annoying him didn't work, she had no idea what she would do. 

Piper hit the buzzer outside the gate. At first, there was no answer. She rolled her eyes and hit the buzzer again. "Come on, Danny."

"Piper?" came Danny's static voice. "You're still out there?"

"Very funny. Open the gate."

There was a sigh on the other side of the buzzer. "Look, Miss Piper, the mayor said to keep the gate shut. I can't let you in."

"That's bullshit and you know it," Piper snapped. "Just wait until the people hear about this."

"I really am sorry, Miss Piper. But there's nothing I can do. You'll have to talk to the mayor."

If she had enough caps to pay for it, Piper would have knocked the buzzer down in anger. "I can't talk to the damn mayor when I'm stuck out here, Danny!"

Piper threw her hands in the air and turned away. There had to be another way into Diamond City. 

Sneaking in with a trader? No, that would take too long and she would be caught easily. She could pretend there were Super Mutants at the gate? But Danny would never believe that, not when there was so much security outside the gate. 

She even thought about posing as a guard, but nearly everyone would recognize her. 

Before she could come up with any other plans that could get her killed or imprisoned, Piper heard gunshots nearby. Her head whipped to her left after hearing what sounded like a laser gun going off. 

_ Could this Johnson guy be telling the truth? _ Piper thought.  _ Is that Vault Dweller nearby? _

It also could have been the Institute finally sending synths to attempt to take over Diamond City. At this point, Piper wouldn't have been surprised by much. 

Super Mutants cried out as more shots from a laser gun filled the area. They were typically louder than bullets, and they echoed loudly. Piper was sure even the people inside Diamond City could hear it. 

Piper looked around to see the guards standing on edge. They each had their guns drawn, but... None of them were making a move. So, really, who was taking down the Super Mutants with such ease?

What sounded like a final shot rang out, and a Super Mutant Piper hadn't even noticed fell to the ground not too far from the edge of a spotlight nearby. 

Shit. They'd been having problems with those Super Mutants for weeks now. There had been at least six of them. Who in the hell could take them down that quickly?

"Stay alert," a guard shouted. 

Piper rolled her eyes.  _ No shit. _

All was silent for a few moments. It seemed like even the slightly mutated birds knew what had just happened. Besides the slight blow of the wind, nothing made a sound. It created an eerie effect around them.

Piper feared the worst; that the Institute's synths  _ had _ finally come to take over Diamond City. The more time dragged on, the more she thought that's what was happening. 

A lone figure stepped out of a building, limping slightly. A dog followed after, trotting beside its owner. 

There was a handgun dangling from one of the stranger's hands. Their free arm seemed to be wrapped around their waist. Their head was bowed, and there were patches of blood on the shirt under their leather jacket. Their boots were dirty with blood or dirt, Piper really couldn't tell. 

A laser musket was strapped across their chest, though no light came from it. They must have run out of fusion cells after the fight with the Super Mutants. 

"Halt!" a guard yelled. With that one word, all the other guards raised their weapons to the stranger. "What is your business here?"

Piper instinctively moved her hand to the gun on her hip as the stranger stopped. They were breathing heavily, their face still hidden. Their large dog stood in front of them, glaring at the guards and growling deeply. 

Were they a raider? Were they going to try to kill as many of the guards as they could before they were shot down? Or were they just some poor traveler caught in the middle of something they couldn't handle?

In a quick movement, the stranger lifted the handgun, pointing it at one of the guards. They lifted their head slowly, almost as if it was paining them to do so. 

The stranger had short brown hair that was shaved on the sides and back. The longer part of their hair was messy and stuck to their face, either from sweat or blood. 

Piper felt sympathy for the person in front of her, despite the situation. There was a bruise under one of their eyes, and one on their jaw. Their lip was split, blood sliding down their chin. There must have been a cut near their temple as well, since there was dried blood on the side of their face. 

"Drop your weapon," a guard said, "or we shoot."

The stranger grinned and chuckled, but winced right after. They closed their eyes. 

It was then that Piper saw more of the damage they had seen. Three large cuts went through their jacket on their left arm, piercing their skin. It looked nasty and like it hadn't been well cleaned. 

"Wait," Piper said as she stepped forward. "They're-"

"Step back, citizen," a different guard said, holding an arm out. "They could be dangerous."

"They're hurt," Piper said. "They need medical attention."

"And we'll give it to them as soon as they drop their weapons."

Piper ignored the guard and took another step forward. The stranger opened their eyes, now gazing at Piper with curiosity. It took only a second before their gaze hardened and they pointed the gun at Piper instead.

Piper's eyes widened and she raised her hands, palms out. She really should have been used to these situations by now, but she couldn't stop her heart from skipping a beat. As the stranger aimed their gun at Piper, the guards around them raised their guns and pointed them at the stranger. 

"I can help you," Piper said calmly. "You don't have to drop your gun, but you do have to lower it. Otherwise, these guys are going to shoot you, and you'll most likely die."

The stranger gripped the gun harder. "They might as well. This place has been a shithole since I woke up. Someone or something is always trying to kill me."

Piper's brows furrowed. They should have been used to that already. Living in the Wasteland made one cautious, but this was just straight paranoia. Usually, if someone wasn't actively shooting at her, Piper assumed they had a chance to be friendly. But she had also been backstabbed enough times to know that wasn't always true. 

"Yeah, yeah, we've all had it rough," the first guard said. "Drop. Your. Weapon. I won't ask again."

"You didn't ask in the first place," the stranger mumbled. They lowered their weapon and coughed, more blood coming from their mouth. They groaned in pain, hunching slightly. 

A guard moved toward them, but before they could get very far, the dog in front of the stranger lunged and snapped his jaws at the guard. A warning to stay away.

Piper didn't know what the hell she was doing. But when she saw someone was hurt and wasn't trying to kill her, instinct kicked in. She always wanted to help whoever she could in any way possible.

It was a flaw that had been the main reason she had almost been killed several times before. 

She walked forward slowly, hands still up in the air. The dog eyed her, but he didn't make a move toward her. He let her walk up to his owner, but he looked ready to attack if he needed to. 

The stranger huffed a laugh as Piper slowed to a stop. "I hate this place," they mumbled before their knees buckled and they fell to the side, away from Piper. 

Their handgun skid across the pavement as they fell. Piper was the first to move to get to them as they lay sprawled against the cracked pavement. 

She placed a hand against the side of their face, her heart thundering in her chest. This was the most exciting thing she had been a part of in a long time. 

"We'll take it from here, Miss Piper," one of the guards said. "And for helping us take them down without violence, we'll let you inside Diamond City. The mayor should know how well you handled this situation. It could have gone a lot worse."

The dog looked like he didn't want to leave his owner's side, but he didn't have a choice as two guards picked them up and carried them to the gate. The dog stood by Piper's side, looking up at her with big eyes. 

"I know, buddy," Piper said. "I'm sure they'll let you see your owner again."

As the other guards were talking, Piper walked over to the handgun that had fallen from the stranger's hand. She released the clip into her hand, her brows furrowing when she saw no bullets. 

_ So, it was just a show. _

Piper looked at the now-opening gate. They weren't even going to hurt anyone. There had been no fusion cells in their laser gun and no bullets in their handgun. 

Did they want the guards to shoot them? Or did they just feel threatened and acted like they could've shot if they wanted to?

It was hard to say. Without really knowing the stranger, Piper couldn't tell their motives. 

Despite everything, Piper found herself smiling. "I'll personally take you to see your owner, boy," she told the dog. "I have questions for them."

Piper walked forward, the dog staying by her side. Whatever was happening, she would get to the bottom of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooh, a ~mysterious stranger~
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! Feedback is always welcome!


	3. The (Proper) Meeting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this came out a few days late! I was with my family since Wednesday and couldn't find time to write. 
> 
> The next update will still be out on Saturday!
> 
> Enjoy!

Nora groaned as she woke. Her head felt like it was going to explode and her whole body ached. Although, she was no longer in any major pain. 

She opened her eyes but immediately closed them when she saw she was in a bright room. Or, maybe it wasn't that bright and her eyes just needed to adjust to artificial lighting again. 

Nora groaned and sat up on her elbows. She squinted as she tried looking around. 

"So, you  _ are _ alive."

Nora put a hand above her eyes to shield them from the light. Why was everything so blurry? "Who-"

"You gave us quite a fright, coming into my city like that," the voice continued. "I was just coming down to see if you had woken yet, and here you are."

Nora fully sat up. She was... in a jail cell, apparently. Her jacket was gone, leaving her in a dirtied white shirt and bandages wrapped around her left shoulder and bicep. Some of her blood was dried on the left side of her shirt. Even her PipBoy was gone. 

Dogmeat was lying beside her bed, watching the man across the bars of her cell. He glanced up at her as she moved her legs over the side of the hard bed.

"Who are you?" Nora asked. "And where am I?"

"Why, you're in Diamond City, of course! Do you not remember threatening my guards and collapsing outside of the gates?"

Nora rubbed her forehead. She barely remembered what happened after the fight with those large green monsters. Their mutated hounds had done some damage, and besides feeling terrified that she was going to be killed by a strange group of people with guns, she didn't remember anything. 

"If I was threatening them," Nora said, "it's because they pointed their guns at me first. You should teach your guards to be less threatening to get what they want."

The large man in front of her curled his lip slightly. "Yes, well. You must understand I cannot let you out in your current condition. You are a threat to my people, and I cannot let threats roam free."

"You already took all of her weapons," came a woman's voice. "What threat could she be now?"

The man sighed and closed his eyes briefly. He turned to a woman coming down the stairs, a fake smile on his face. "Ah, Piper. I doubt the guards let you down here willingly."

The woman stopped at the other end of the room. Her face was hidden by shadows. "Let her go, McDonough. Doctor Sun already looked at her and said her little display outside was from exhaustion and lack of food or water. Keeping her here will likely cause any friends of hers to come looking, and you don't want that."

There was nothing but silence for a moment. All Nora could think about was why this woman was defending her when they had never met before. 

"And if you don't let her go," the woman continued, "I'll have word get out that you're keeping someone you know nothing about imprisoned with no intention of letting them go. The people won't like that."

Nora leaned forward to rest her elbows on her knees. "She's got a point. I have no grudge against Diamond City. I was just told to come here to look for someone."

The large man glanced between them. He sighed and rustled around in one of his pockets. "Fine. I want to keep my reputation." He pulled out a key. "But you will find who you're looking for and leave. Understand?"

Nora gave the man a mock salute. She stood slowly and stretched her limbs, ignoring the pounding in her head. She would just need to get out of this cell and find somewhere to peacefully sleep her problems away. 

The cell swung open, but the man didn't spend any more time trying to speak to her. He quickly turned and made his way to the staircase, glaring at the woman hidden in the shadows once more. 

"Thank you," Nora mumbled. She stepped out of the cell, crossing her arms over her chest. "I owe you one."

"Don't worry about it," the woman said. "Just doing my duty."

Nora shook her head slightly and looked at the ground. "I don't suppose you know how to get out of here? Apparently, I was unconscious when they brought me down here."

"Yeah, come on." The woman turned and began walking up the stairs. Nora only saw a brief glimpse of a red jacket. "I wanted to talk to you, anyway. I was there when you were outside the gate, ready to shoot someone."

Nora snorted. "I didn't have any bullets left."

The woman glanced back at her. "I know. That's why I wanted to ask you some questions. Let me ask what I want to ask and I'll buy you a meal."

"What makes you think-"

"Diamond City's doctor already took a look at you. You had it pretty rough." The woman raised her hands. "You can either let me buy you something to eat or you can be on your merry way. I won't stop you if you'd rather get out of this town."

Nora thought for a moment as she paused at the top of the staircase. She really should have been looking around for someone to help her, but... Damn, was she starving. She hadn't eaten in God knows how long, too afraid of getting radiation poisoning to eat anything other than what Codsworth had deemed safe for human consumption. 

"I... appreciate the offer," Nora said carefully, "but I really need to find someone to help me."

The woman looked back at her, and Nora was finally able to see her features. She was... attractive, Nora supposed. But she had no time to think about that. She didn't even  _ like _ women that way. She must have just been happy to find someone else that wasn't going to shoot her on the spot. 

The woman nodded. "Of course. Is there anything I can help with? I've been in Diamond City for a while, so I can probably answer any questions you have."

Nora nodded her thanks at a guard that handed her her PipBoy and her weapons. Her guns wouldn't be much use now, but she appreciated the gesture nonetheless. 

"I'm looking for someone," Nora said as she followed the woman outside. "My son. He was kidnapped."

"Ah." The woman looked around. "Usually, I'd tell you to see Nick Valentine. But he's been missing for almost a month now."

Nora closed her eyes.  _ Just my luck. _

"His assistant, Ellie, might know more about where he is. And you look like you can handle yourself, so I'm sure she'd appreciate any help she can get."

"If it'll help me, I'll do whatever I can to get this Valentine guy back."

The woman smiled. She extended a hand. "Allow me to properly introduce myself when you don't have a gun in my face. Piper Wright."

Nora hesitantly shook the gloved hand, a small smile twitching on her lips. "Nora."

"Nora," Piper repeated. Her eyes looked distant for a moment. "A lovely name." A slight blush appeared on Piper's face before she cleared her throat and looked away. "Look, I should probably get back before the mayor tries locking me out again. But if you ever want a meal in return for me asking questions, come find me."

Nora nodded. "It was a pleasure to meet you. And thank you for not trying to kill me when you first saw me."

Piper began backing away. She shrugged one shoulder. "I should have, you know. You  _ did _ try to kill me first." Her smile turned into a grin. "But I'm glad I didn't. See you around."

Nora snorted and shook her head as she turned to leave. Dogmeat sat by her side, looking up at her with what looked like a smile. 

She looked around for anything that might suggest where this Valentine guy's assistant may be. After just a moment of looking, Nora found what she was looking for. 

There was a bright sign near Nora that read  _ Valentine Detective Agency.  _ That must have been where she had to go.

"Come on, boy," Nora mumbled as she began walking. "The sooner we figure out where to find this guy, the better."

Nora chose to ignore the stares she received as she walked through Diamond City. She didn't know why everyone openly stared at her as though they weren't making her uncomfortable. Had everyone heard about her little incident outside? The one she didn't even fully remember?

She shook her head. It didn't really matter. She didn't even want to be in Diamond City. She wished she could just be back at her house with Nate and Shaun, not in this post-apocalyptic nightmare. 

It didn't take long to find what she was looking for. Nora knocked on the door first before slowly entering. After all, she had no idea who or what she would find inside. 

"I'm sorry," came a woman's voice, "but we're not taking any new cases at the moment."

Nora paused and shut the door quietly behind her. "Yeah, I heard your detective went missing."

The woman standing near filing cabinets turned to look at her. Her face paled as her eyes widened. "You... You're the one they caught outside."

Nora rolled her eyes. She supposed everyone  _ had _ heard about the little incident. "I am. I'm not here to cause trouble, though. I wanted to help."

The woman narrowed her eyes. "And how would you do that? You took a big risk trying to shoot a guard. If you want to get Nick back, you can't do things like that."

Nora put a hand over her heart. "You have my word. Now, can you tell me-"

"Why do you want to find him, anyway?" the woman asked. "What's your goal?"

"I... I'm looking for someone. My son. He was kidnapped, and I heard your detective may be able to help me find him." 

The woman's features softened. "I see. He would definitely help you look." She sighed. "I'm Ellie. Sorry for all the questions, but you have to understand where I'm coming from. You're a stranger and you made quite a scene outside the gate."

Nora raised her hands, palms out. "No, I get it. Everyone has been trying to kill me since I woke up in this shithole, so I wouldn't blame you for being suspicious."

"Since you... woke up?" 

"I, uh... I'm actually from a vault. I figured not wearing a bright blue jumpsuit would help me fit in more."

Ellie snorted and shook her head. "Do you know how to use a gun? With you being in a vault and all, I wasn't sure if-"

Nora crossed her arms over her chest. "I know how to use one. That's all you need to know."

She didn't know why she was being defensive about it. She barely knew how to properly shoot a gun. She just had luck on her side when she had been taking down those green mutants.

That's why she had been out of bullets. Most of them had hit the walls behind the mutants. 

If Nora wanted to survive in the Wasteland, she would need help. If Nate had been here...

She couldn't think about that. Nate was gone. It was just her against the world, against whoever took Shaun.

"Fair enough," Ellie said. She pulled out a file. "Nick was out looking for a woman that had run away. She had been with Skinny Malone, a mob boss near Boston Common. If you could find him... Well. You'd be doing Diamond City a favor."

Nora took the file from Ellie and skimmed over it. She knew where Ellie was talking about. It was a little pond in the middle of Boston. Distantly, she wondered what it would look like now. 

"I'll find him and bring him back," Nora said as she set the file down on a desk. "This Skinny Malone guy won't get away with this."

Before the bombs fell, Nora had been a lawyer. She had always wanted to see justice in the world, and this was no different. Even with the world the way it was, she would make sure it would turn out better than she left it. 

Ellie nodded. "I really appreciate you doing this. And I hope Nick is able to help you with your son."

Nora quietly sighed. "You and me both," she mumbled. 

She turned to leave, ushering Dogmeat out the door. If she remembered correctly, the place Ellie had told her about wasn't far. It had been one of the places Shaun loved going to. 

Nora was thankful everything still remained somewhat the same. She remembered landmarks despite several of them being nothing but debris. 

The thought of what had happened made her sick to her stomach. To think that everything she knew could be taken from her, just like that...

Nora shook her head slightly. Dwelling on past events wouldn't solve anything. She needed to keep a clear head if she wanted to get this Nick guy and survive. 

Nora passed through Diamond City, not bothering to take in any sights. It wouldn't matter, anyway. She had already seen the stadium plenty of times, and there wasn't much that seemed worth remembering. Maybe it was just because Nora still wasn't used to this new world, despite living in it for a few weeks. 

Nora slowed her pace as she neared the exit. The woman she had met, Piper, was standing outside a building marked  _ Publick Occurrences. _ She didn't seem to notice anyone was looking at her. 

She would have to stop by and take Piper up on her offer. After all, a few questions was nothing in return for a meal. She honestly couldn't remember the last time she had anything other than a quick, many years-expired snack. It had certainly been a while. 

Piper went inside the building, carrying a small stack of papers. Nora sighed and began walking away. At least she knew  _ someone _ would be friendly with her if she came back. 

* * *

Piper glanced out of a window inside Publick Occurrences. Nora had started to walk away, her dog still by her side. 

She had known exactly who had been watching her while she was outside. She'd watched Nora walk up, but turned to make it seem like she was oblivious. 

Piper... didn't know how to feel about this newcomer. She seemed like a decent person, but there was something off about her. Nora acted like she was this innocent person, but Piper had seen the look in her eyes outside the gate. She wouldn't have been afraid to pull the trigger. 

Piper only said what she did around the mayor to get Nora out of that cell. While Doctor Sun  _ had _ taken a look at her and deemed her sane enough to leave, neither he nor Mayor McDonough had been in front of that pistol. Neither of them had been on the receiving end of those hard eyes. 

She supposed she couldn't blame Nora for threatening to shoot them. After all, in the Wasteland, it was hard to tell who you could and couldn't trust. And with her son being kidnapped, her paranoia was probably through the roof. 

Piper glanced out the window one more time. Nora was gone, and everything went back to normal. It was almost like she had never even been there. 

Still. She couldn't stop herself from picturing Nora. Even with a gun pointed at her face, Nora had been kinda-

"Stop it," Piper muttered to herself. She turned back to her papers. "She has a son, which means she probably has a husband or boyfriend, too." 

_ And you really don't want to get caught up in that. _

She probably should keep her distance, but... part of her knew she would never be able to stay away from a woman like Nora. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooh someone's getting a crush ;)
> 
> Jk it's still slowburn. wlw be dumb af
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! Feedback is always welcome!


	4. Unlikely Valentine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, college. Kicking my ass since day one. 
> 
> Enjoy!

As Nora dove behind a trashcan in Boston Common, she wondered why her cryo pod just  _ had _ to malfunction this year. Couldn't it have waited until things had calmed a little?

Gunshots rang out around her. Nora tried making herself as small as possible so she didn't get shot again.  _ That _ hadn't been fun to deal with when medical supplies were so low. 

"Come on, little girl," a man shouted. "We just want to talk."

Nora rolled her eyes. Just because she couldn't shoot a pistol properly didn't make her  _ little. _ She had always made sure she was physically strong, so she was just as capable as the man taunting her. 

Taking a deep breath, Nora stood and pointed her gun at the man in strange armor. He grinned as she did so, raising his own weapon. "Go on. Shoot me."

Really, did  _ everyone _ just happen to know what inexperienced people looked like? She thought she had blended in at least a little, even with her vault suit. 

Nora had stopped in Sanctuary to get more supplies and clothes that weren't ripped from the over-sized lizard with claws as long as her forearm. 

Yeah. That had been a nice surprise after she met the Minutemen. 

To hopefully hide some of the bright blue vault suit, Nora had also grabbed another jacket. This one was thicker, but who really knew if it would keep her any safer. 

Nora swallowed a lump growing in her throat and attempted to steady her arm. She didn't like how much it shook. 

Before waking up, she would have never considered killing anyone. But she had learned fairly quickly that it was a kill or be killed world now. She'd had to put her own morals aside to survive. 

That didn't mean the deaths on her hands didn't haunt her. She thought about them nearly every night. She wished the world had never come to the way it was. 

Nora put her finger over the trigger for just a second before pulling it. The bullet missed the man in front of her, but it still distracted him long enough for Dogmeat to lunge at him and latch onto his arm. The man bent forward, moving to grab Dogmeat. 

Nora stepped closer to get a better shot. She aimed her pistol at the man's head and closed her eyes as she pulled the trigger. The sound of a body falling to the ground filled the now empty square. 

"Guess you forgot my dog, huh?"

Dogmeat happily trotted over to Nora, seemingly forgetting he had just helped her kill a man. He was all smiles as he sat beside her, looking around. 

Nora glanced at the pond in front of her before moving toward the subway entrance. She stepped over the bodies of others she had shot down. She really didn't understand why there were random bands of people just shooting everything that moved. It seemed a major waste of resources. 

Keeping her pistol unholstered, Nora made her way inside the subway. She kept her footsteps light as she walked the quiet subway. Some lights were spread around, but the room she was in was still darker than she would have liked. 

She peeked her head around a darkened corner, keeping an ear out for anyone that might've been lurking. Distantly, she could hear people talking and laughing about something. 

Nora crept down the stairs. The voices got louder as she descended, and more light came from through. She motioned for Dogmeat to stay low and quiet as she paused at a large doorway. 

She slowly looked around the corner. There were several men in suits and vests hanging around. There were what looked like machine guns in their hands, though none of them seemed to be on alert. 

Nora narrowed her eyes at one of the men. His skin was wrinkly, his face gaunt. His eyes seemed to be pure  _ black. _

_ All right, what kind of horror movie shit did I stumble in on? _

Dogmeat glanced up at Nora. She nodded at him once before stepping into the room. 

The men glanced at her. One of them grinned. "What's this? A little lamb found her way down into the lion's den, it seems."

One of the normal-looking men laughed. He nodded at the pistol dangling from her hand. "Do you even know how to use that, doll?"

Nora smiled and tilted her head to the side. In one second, she was raising her pistol. The men  _ oohed _ mockingly and laughed again. 

In the next moment, Nora pulled the trigger. Blood splattered against the wall behind one of the men as he slumped to the ground. 

Nora dove behind a pillar as bullets rained around her. There were only three men left, but they had more dangerous weapons than she did. And if she missed any of her shots...

Nora closed her eyes. She needed to focus. She wasn't great at shooting a gun yet, but she would need to get used to it. 

_ This is all for Shaun, _ Nora thought as she put a bullet in one of the strange-looking men's chests.  _ Don't think about what you have to do. Just do it.  _

"How are two of us dead?" one of the men shouted. "She's just a scared little girl."

Nora grinned and shot another. The bullet went into his thigh, but he still went down, his gun skidding against the tile. 

Dogmeat barked deeply and lunged at someone that had come too close. Nora shot him before he could attack. He staggered back, putting a hand against the wound on his shoulder. 

"You shouldn't underestimate people based on their looks," Nora said. She shot around the pillar, grimacing at the sound of the bullet hitting home. "I'm after someone. Nick Valentine. Tell me where he is and I'll stop shooting."

One of the remaining men let out a noise of frustration. "We ain't telling you jack shit!" 

Nora shrugged. She stepped away from the pillar and leveled her pistol at the most open man. He raised his own gun, his lip curling. "Your loss."

The man was falling to the ground not a moment later, his gun slipping out of his hands. 

"You're just one girl," the last man said. "There's a bunch of us. You won't make it to that detective in one piece."

Nora ignored the man and finished the job. She sighed, emptying the clip in her gun and replacing it. She would need to be even more careful now. Her bullets were running low. Unless...

She bent down and picked up one of the men's guns, now slick with his blood. She sighed once more and examined it. 

It would be good when she ran into more of those guys, but she was afraid she would be even worse with a gun like that. Though she supposed it wouldn't require too much skill. All she had to do was point, shoot, and she'd probably hit someone. 

Nora strapped the gun across her chest, looking for more ammo on the men she killed. She tried to look anywhere but their faces. The last thing she needed was more proof of the woman she had become. 

"We heard gunshots," came a yelled voice from another staircase. "Is everyone all right up there?" 

Nora readied her new gun and walked toward the staircase. There was already another of those strange-looking men walking up. He called out in surprise, but before he could really do something, there were holes in his chest. 

_ I just want the detective, _ Nora thought as she stepped over the body.  _ Please. I don't want to hurt anyone else. _

She already knew they wouldn't stop shooting at her. And seeing how she didn't feel like dying today, she would shoot back. 

Nora raised her gun and rapidly shot at the man standing at the bottom of the stairs. He stumbled back into a wall, raising a hand to his chest. He stared horrified at Nora as he slipped against the wall to the ground. 

"Shit," someone nearby cursed. "We've got company!"

Dogmeat rushed ahead, latching onto someone else's arm. He brought the man closer to Nora, leaving him wide open for her to get a few shots in. He groaned and fell to the floor. 

Someone came up behind Nora and slammed something hard into her back. She cried out and fell to the ground on her hands and knees. She raised her gun just as a bat came swinging down at her. Even with the gun blocking most of the bat, she still couldn't keep it away from her. Part of her gun hit her chest, knocking the breath out of her lungs. 

Dogmeat was apparently busy with someone else to help her get this guy off of her. He snarled and raised his bat again over his head. 

"Oh, come on," Nora mumbled as she rolled out of the way. The bat cracked against the hard floor. "Can't a gal catch a break around here?"

Nora used her core to lift her hips and legs off the ground and kick the man away. He stumbled back but recovered quickly as bullets shot near her head. She quickly scrambled to her feet, raising her gun to the man with the bat. 

The man charged her and swung. Nora danced back on the balls of her feet, unable to watch where she was going. Her calves hit a block of concrete and she flipped over it, landing on her back once more. 

Nora raised her gun and fired as the man came into view. The bullets rapidly found their way into his chest. The bat dropped to the ground with a loud  _ thud _ , the man falling a few moments later. 

She slowly stood this time, looking around for the others. She couldn't see Dogmeat anywhere, but the sound of him growling was nearby. 

"You're gonna pay for messing with us!" someone shouted. "No one gets away with attacking Skinny's men."

"Really?" Nora shouted back. She unholstered her pistol and shot it where she thought she heard the voice. The sound of a grunt let her know she had hit the guy. "I think I'm going to."

The man, falling right into her trap, stood from where he had been crouched behind some crates. Nora didn't let him speak another word. The sound of another bullet hitting the man in the head echoed throughout the subway. 

Dogmeat yelped somewhere nearby. Nora holstered her pistol and raised her heavier gun, silently making her way to where she heard her companion.  _ No, no one hurts my loved ones and gets away with it. _

Dogmeat was cowering from a man that had the butt of his gun raised. Nora leveled him with her gun and snapped, "Touch him again and I'll kill you with my bare hands."

Maybe some would think she was overreacting, but Dogmeat had been the first friendly living being she had met. He had been by her side all this time, keeping her company and helping her survive. Without him, she had no idea where she would be. 

So, no, she  _ would _ willingly beat the life out of this man for touching her best friend. 

The man looked at her and grinned. "Like this?"

However, he didn't get the chance to do anything. Nora fired shots into his thigh, and while he was distracted, she hit him right on the nose. Blood poured from it and from the wound on his leg. 

Nora grabbed a fistful of the man's shirt and slammed him against the side of an abandoned train. "Do  _ not _ threaten the ones I love."

The man gritted his teeth and whacked her upside the head with his gun. Nora took a few steps back, raising a hand to her temple. When she pulled back, there was blood on her fingertips. 

The man raised his gun and shot. The bullet went through Nora's shoulder and she cried out, retreating further. She raised her own gun and fired, not caring that the gun slammed into her shoulder. 

As soon as the man was down, Nora let go of her gun. It didn't fall to the floor, instead knocking against her with the strap. She raised her good arm to her bad shoulder. She hissed through her teeth as pain shot through her arm when she touched the wound. 

Dogmeat whined. He nudged his snout against her thigh. 

Nora nodded. "I know, bud. But we need to keep moving. I'll be fine."

Nora tried taking a step forward, but Dogmeat stood in front of her, unmoving. His ears were flat on his head. 

Nora sighed and scratched his head. "Buddy, I don't have any medical supplies. It'll have to wait anyway. If we just get in and get Detective Valentine, we can get back to Diamond City and I can get treated. All right?"

Dogmeat looked ready to argue if he were able to speak, but he moved out of the way. Still, he stayed right by her side, glancing up at her as they walked. 

Thankfully, there weren't any more goons waiting for her as she went deeper into the abandoned subway. 

Eventually, she came upon what looked like a vault door. Her brows raised as she paused. "Damn. Who knew there was another vault in Boston?"

Nora raised her PipBoy as she made her way to a console, similar to the one she used to get out of Vault 111. It didn't take long to get the vault door open. 

"Really?" Nora asked as she made her way into the vault. "All of this guy's goons were outside? That's sad."

She had only run into two men while traversing the vault, and they had been too distracted to notice anyone else was in the room with them. Even with her injured arm, she had taken them out quickly. 

Nora entered a large room, pausing when she heard someone talking. He seemed to be up the stairs, but who could he have been talking to? More goons, maybe?

Nora kept her footfalls as quiet as possible and gestured for Dogmeat to do the same. The man's voice became clearer as she ascended yet another staircase. 

Really, was the subway and this vault built for fit people? 

"...sentimental on me," came the voice Nora heard earlier. "No one's coming for you, Nicky."

"I beg to differ," said another voice. "I think there are still some people in this world that will gladly serve justice for people they don't know."

The other man's voice sounded almost... synthetic? Nora hoped she was just hearing him wrong. 

"What are you on about now?" the first man asked. Nora peeked around the corner of the doorway. He had his arms crossed and was looking in on a sealed room. "Ain't no one coming."

Nora stepped toward the man and raised her gun. "What makes you so sure?"

The man turned to her, his eyes wide. He raised his own gun. "Who the hell are you?"

Nora jerked her chin at the room the detective was in. "Let him go and I won't shoot."

"Best do what she says," said the man inside the room. "She made it here on her own, after all. I'd say your chances of leaving are pretty slim."

But the man shook his head. "Skinny Malone told me I needed to keep you here no matter what. I'm not letting some little girl-"

He never got to finish his sentence. Nora shot him once with her pistol, and he collapsed to the floor. 

"I really don't have time to keep listening to monologues," she mumbled. "And why does everyone keep calling me little? My muscles are bigger than yours, douche."

Nora walked to where the man had been standing and-

Her throat seemed to close up. What the hell was looking back at her?

Inside the room was what looked like a robot. Some of its skin was gone and its eyes glowed bright yellow. It wore an old-timey detective getup.

"So, you're my savior," the robot said. "You'll need to unlock the door at the terminal over there. The guy guarding my door should have a password on him."

Nora gulped and searched the man at her feet. Sure enough, there was a tape labeled  _ password. _ Awfully convenient. 

She inserted the tape into the terminal like the robot told her to do. After searching for just a few moments, she heard the sounds of the door unlocking. She took a deep breath before walking inside the room. 

"You're... Nick Valentine, I assume?"

The robot smiled at her. "I am. Surprised you're not freaking out right now, kid."

Nora chuckled nervously. "I'll admit, I really have no idea what I'm looking at right now."

Nick glanced around. "I'm a synth, from the Institute. And before you ask, no, I'm not with them."

"The... Institute?"

Nick narrowed his eyes. "You don't know who they are?" He glanced down at her blue jumpsuit. "Ah. It seems I answered my own question."

Dogmeat whined and nudged her knee. Nora nodded. "Look, I need your help. That's why I came to rescue you. My son was kidnapped, and I was told you would be able to help me."

"I can, sure." He seemed to notice the blood coming from her shoulder. "Let's get you out of here and get that taken care of first. The last thing you need is an infection to go with a missing son."

Nora followed Nick out of the room. "Do you know how to get out of here?" She hissed as her arm twitched. "The faster we get out of here, the better."

"Shouldn't be too hard to get out of," Nick said. "The only problem is we're probably going to run into Skinny Malone. He won't like that you got me out of that room."

"I would assume not. Maybe he'll let us go when he realizes most of his men are dead.'

Nick looked back at her. "I'm impressed, kid. Most vault dwellers would have been scared out of their minds by now."

"I have too much at stake to be afraid of some men with guns," Nora said quietly. "The minute I lose my composure is the minute I can kiss my future with my son goodbye."

Nick remained quiet. He either didn't know what to say or thought it was best to say nothing. 

They thankfully only ran into a few more goons. Nick shot them down easily. He told her to stay back unless she wanted to worsen her wound. 

It wasn't until they were nearing the exit that Nora's wound finally caught up to her. She stumbled as she walked, her head throbbing. Her eyes seemed almost too heavy to keep open.

"Hey, hey," Nick said. He put his hands on her shoulders, careful not to touch the open wound. He wrapped her good arm around his shoulders. "It'll be all right. Once we're out of here-"

"You ain't going anywhere, Nicky," said an unfamiliar voice behind them. "Your friend there has a lot of deaths to answer for."

Nick paused. He turned his head to face whoever was behind them. "I figured it was only a matter of time before you showed up." 

Nick slowly turned them around, still careful of Nora's wound. She could barely raise her head to look at the people in front of her. 

There was a large man with a machine gun and a woman standing next to him. She looked just as frightening. Flanking them were several more goons, guns at the ready.

The man in a tuxedo scoffed. "Your little friend needs to learn not to cross me."

Nora groaned as pain shot through her arm. Her knees buckled, but Nick somehow kept her upright. God, she really lost a lot of blood. 

Dogmeat whined and stood in front of her. The fur on the back of his neck stood up as he growled lowly. 

"When did you get shot?" Nick asked quietly. 

Nora leaned heavily against him. "Before I... entered the vault."

Nick cursed under his breath. "Malone, if you don't back off-"

"He doesn't take orders from you!" said the woman standing beside Skinny Malone. "My baby doesn't take orders from anyone."

Nora gritted her teeth. "Darla, right?" she asked. "I read your file. You ran away from home, probably looking for adventure? It's not here. What kind of  _ strong man _ gets taken down so easily by one woman?"

Ah, old fashioned sexism. If the men here really thought Nora was inferior just because she was a woman, she would use that to her advantage.

"You caught him by surprise," Darla said. "Otherwise, he and his men would've taken you down like you were  _ nothing. _ "

Nora smiled. "Sure they would have. It's funny, you know. All this time, his men told me  _ I _ was the weak one. But what kind of leader has to hide behind his goons?"

There was silence for a moment. Nick's grip on her tightened. "What are you doing..."

Nora unholstered her pistol and raised it at Malone. "I'm giving you to the count of ten to let us go before I blow his brains out."

That made Malone and Darla hesitate. The men behind them didn't seem to care either way. 

Then, Malone chuckled. "You wouldn't. You don't have it in you to look me in the eyes and shoot me."

Nora raised her head, trying desperately to ignore the pain. She looked Malone right in the eyes, her finger moving over the trigger. "You really want to test that theory?"

"Let us go, Skinny," Nick said. "I've seen her in action. And if she doesn't take you down, I will."

"You're really not going to do anything?" Darla asked. "Order your men to shoot them!"

"Look at him, Darla. He's not the man you thought he was. Sure, he seems like your typical bad boy, but deep down, he's just a scared little man." Nora leaned more against Nick. "He isn't good enough for you."

Darla glanced between Nora and Malone. "I..."

"Darla, please," Malone said. "She's just trying to get in your head. She doesn't know what she's talking about."

"I spoke to your family," Nora said. "They miss you. Don't you want to go back home?"

"They... do?"

Nora nodded. She took a deep breath. "Go home. You don't want to get involved in all of this."

Darla lowered her gun. "Y-You're right. I don't know what I was thinking, coming here. Thank you."

Darla shoved the gun into Malone's hands before running off, presumably leaving. It just seemed to piss Malone off more. 

He raised his gun, gesturing for his goons to do the same. "Now you've done it. I'm really gonna kill you now."

Nora pulled the trigger to her pistol. The bullet hit right between Malone's feet. "If you don't let us go, that bullet will be between your legs."

Malone stared at her for a few moments before he sighed. "Ten seconds. That's all you get. And if I ever see you in the Commonwealth, consider yourself good as dead."

"We'll meet again, I'm sure," Nick said as he hauled Nora away. 

Malone grumbled something as they left, Nora paying him no mind. She tried moving as fast as she could, but she was so  _ tired _ . She was surprised she wasn't dead from the blood loss.

It didn't take long to make it back out of the vault. As soon as Nora's feet touched the dirt, her knees buckled and she fell to the ground. Nick fell with her, keeping her from hitting the ground too hard. 

"You're okay, kid," Nick said. "I can wrap up your shoulder, but we still need to get you to Diamond... be fine."

Nora's head lolled, her eyes shutting against her will. She could barely hear what Nick was saying. 

She could see his lips moving, but nothing was making it to her ears.  _ So tired, _ Nora thought. 

Her eyes closed, and they did not reopen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! Feedback is always welcome!


	5. Back to Diamond City

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had such a hard time writing this for some reason :'(
> 
> Enjoy!

It started out the same as any other night in Diamond City. Piper sat on the steps of Publick Occurences, a cigarette between her fingers. She watched the city calm down, artificial lights flickering on. 

She supposed it was somewhat peaceful. At the very least, it was safer than being out in the Wasteland. 

That was until she heard shouts coming from the gate. 

Piper turned her head toward the shouts, her brows furrowing. The last time something like this had happened...

"Oh, shit," Piper said as she stood. She could just barely make out who was coming inside. 

There was definitely Nick, his eyes glowing against the darkness. He was carrying someone around his shoulders with ease. There was a large dog by his side, looking up at whoever was on his shoulders. 

Piper's eyes widened as Nick came closer.  _ Nora. _

"Nick!" Piper shouted. She gestured to the person on his shoulders. 

Nick smiled at her. "Piper," he said. "Give me a hand, would ya?"

Piper quickly made her way over to Nick, helping him get Nora off his shoulders. "What happened?"

Nora slumped in Piper's arms. Her head rested on Piper's chest as she groaned quietly. 

_ Now isn't the time for you to blush, Piper. _

"She got shot when she was coming to save me. I didn't help her at first because I thought she had  _ just _ been shot. Apparently, she'd had it a while before meeting me."

Piper sighed. "She's gotta stop coming into Diamond City like this," she mumbled. "Where are you going to keep her? She can't go back in that cell."

Nick shook his head. "After Doctor Sun takes a look at her, I was going to let her stay at the agency. At least then, there would always be someone watching her." He lowered his voice. "She's dangerous. You know that, don't you?"

Piper snorted and moved so she could hold Nora better. She was heavier than she looked. "Yeah, I kinda saw that when she took down a group of Super Mutants by herself."

Nick made a low whistling noise. "And here I thought taking down a mob boss's goons was impressive."

Piper looked down at the unconscious woman in her arms. Her brows furrowed when she realized what she was wearing. "Uh. Nick? That's a vault suit."

Nick nodded and moved to help Piper. They ended up slinging each arm across their shoulders to drag her over to Doctor Sun. 

"I know. I was surprised when I saw it, too."

Nora whined lowly as they dragged her to Doctor Sun. Nick handed her over to Piper to knock quickly on Sun's door. 

There was grumbling on the other side of the door before it opened. Doctor Sun opened the door a moment later. "What is so important someone has to- you again?" He stepped out into the night and closed the door behind him. "What is it with this woman and being unconscious every time I see her?"

Piper snorted.  _ You're telling me. _

"She was shot and lost a lot of blood," Nick said. "I was able to wrap it up to keep some of her blood inside her body, but if she doesn't get medical attention soon, she'll likely die."

Doctor Sun sighed. "All right, set her down. Let me get some things and I'll see to her once more." He mumbled something under his breath as he walked back inside the clinic. 

Nick and Piper set Nora against a metal wall gently. Piper sat next to her to keep her from falling on the ground. That just ended up making Piper's cheeks flush more as Nora slouched against her, her cheek on Piper's shoulder. 

Nora groaned and shifted, one arm raising to her injured shoulder. Nick gently grabbed her wrist and set it back down. "Don't worry, kid. You're safe."

Nora slowly blinked her eyes open. She wearily looked around. "Where...?"

Her dog nudged her jaw with his snout. Nora reached up to pet his head before looking up at Piper. Her eyes drooped as she did so, but she smiled. "I remember you," she murmured. 

Piper huffed a laugh. "Yeah?" She lightly knocked her knuckles against the side of Nora's head. "Looks like you've still got some brains in there, after all."

Nora sat up fully, moving away from Piper. "How did I get back in Diamond City? I remember collapsing outside of the subway."

"I carried you back," Nick said. He was crouched in front of Nora, his eyes going over her face. "If I had waited until you woke up to bring you back, you probably wouldn't have made it."

Nora blinked. "How did you- I mean, I'm no lightweight. That must've been exhausting."

Nick smiled and gestured to himself. "In case you haven't noticed, carrying you wasn't a big deal for me. I'm made out of metal, for God's sake."

Nora blushed slightly, but she never got to say anything. Doctor Sun came out of the clinic, medical supplies in hand. He sighed once more as he took a look at Nora. 

"You'll need lots of rest after this," he said. "Maybe next time,  _ don't _ get yourself shot."

Nora snorted. "Sure, I'll just tell the next person that tries to shoot me that it's against the law to do so. That'll show 'em."

Piper shook her head. There were no real laws in the Commonwealth. Sure, in towns, there were laws that the leaders enforced, but once you left those towns, it was a free-for-all. 

Nora began peeling off her jacket with the help of Nick. She winced and hissed through her teeth. 

Piper's eyes widened slightly at the sight. Dried blood was all over Nora's arm and part of her chest. Some of it was even coming through the cloth Nick had wrapped around her shoulder. 

"Why didn't you have any stimpacks?" Doctor Sun asked. He unwrapped the cloth. "You could've avoided almost bleeding out, you know."

Nora looked almost... embarrassed? "I can't afford any."

Doctor Sun paused. "You should have said something. Until you get more caps, I would have given you a few. I'd much rather  _ not _ have people dying around Diamond City."

"Caps?" Nora asked. "What are those?"

"You  _ are _ pretty clueless, huh, Blue?"

Nora turned her head to Piper. "Blue?"

Piper smiled. She pointed at Nora's blue vault suit. "You stand out now. I figured Blue was a fitting nickname."

Nora looked like she was going to smile back, but instead, she hissed in pain as Doctor Sun began cleaning her wound. Her eyes closed and she gritted her teeth. 

"You're very lucky," Doctor Sun said. "By the looks of it, you should have bled out."

Nora nodded. "Guess these old bones are stronger than you'd think."

Piper blinked. "'Old bones'? You look like you're my age."

Nora shook her head. "I... I was stuck in that vault for a long time. If my PipBoy's date is right, then it's been 200 years since I was last in Boston."

Nora wasn't looking at any of them. Her free hand was idly stroking through her dog's fur. 

An uneasy silence settled over them. Piper glanced at Nick, who seemed to be working through something in his head. Doctor Sun was silent, his lips pressed into a thin line as he worked on Nora's wound. 

"You said your son was kidnapped?" Nick asked quietly. He rubbed his chin. "Do you remember when that was?"

Nora shook her head. "No, I... I was still frozen in the vault. There was no way for me to tell when that happened."

Piper frowned. Nora had been frozen deep underground for 200 years? No wonder she was so clueless about the world now.

Nick nodded. "If you can, tell me everything about what you remember."

Nora took a deep breath. "There was some kind of malfunction. The pods we were in started to unfreeze, but we were still stuck in them. I woke up to two people walking into the vault. My husband was in the pod across from me, with our son." Tears formed in her eyes. "He was just a baby. Who would want to take him?"

Nick put a hand on her shoulder. "There are a lot of screwed up people in the Commonwealth." 

Nora was silent for a minute before she spoke again. "They opened my husband's pod and tried taking Shaun, my son. My husband fought back, and they... they..."

She didn't have to finish her sentence. Everyone seemed to know what had happened. 

"Do you remember what they looked like?" Nick asked. "The kidnappers, I mean. Any bit of information would help."

"There was a man and a woman. The man was bald and had a scar over his eye. The woman was just a doctor. I couldn't see any defining features."

Piper and Nick seemed to come to the same conclusion as they looked at each other. 

"It has to be Kellogg," Nick said. "But... When he was in Diamond City, he didn't have a baby with him. He had a kid."

Piper nodded. "Yeah, he was around Nat's age. He never really left Kellogg's house."

Nora sat up. "That... That can't be right. Maybe he took someone else's kid?"

"It's possible." Nick sighed. "He was a bit of a recluse. He could have been that way because he was a mass kidnapper."

"Either way, it has to be him, right? Where's his house? Maybe we can-"

"No," Doctor Sun said. He tied an actual bandage around Nora's shoulder. "You need to get some rest and stop putting a strain on your shoulder."

"But Kellogg-"

"Isn't in Diamond City anymore," Nick said. "He left a few days before I was taken by Skinny Malone."

Nora slumped against the wall behind her. "There has to be something we can do."

"There is." Piper rubbed the back of her neck. "No one ever moved into Kellogg's house. If you can somehow get in there, I'm sure you'd find whatever clues you're looking for."

Nick nodded and stood. "She's right. Tomorrow, you can talk to the mayor and make an appeal. He might let you search it for a good cause."

Nora chuckled, but it held no humor. "Yeah, the mayor and I aren't exactly on good terms right now."

Doctor Sun put Nora's arm into a makeshift sling. "He is a sensible man. He should understand that you're only doing it to find your son." He looked Nora over once more. "Before you leave again, come see me. I'm serious about getting rest."

"I'll make sure she does, doc. Thank you." Nick extended a hand to Nora. "Come on. You can sleep at the agency for now."

Piper helped Nora stand. She crossed her arms over her chest as Nick helped her walk. 

"Thanks for your help, Piper," Nora called out, looking over her shoulder. She smiled gently. "I won't forget it."

Piper stuttered out a  _ no problem, _ cursing under her breath as Nora walked away.  _ Real smooth. _

"Watch over her, will you?" Doctor Sun asked. Piper looked back at him. "I get the feeling she isn't the type to listen to others."

Piper nodded. She had the same feeling, though she wondered if she had just been imagining things. 

Piper cleared her throat and began walking back to Publick Occurrences. "Thanks, doc. Sorry about coming here so late." 

Doctor Sun waved his hand. "That's what I'm here for."

Piper's brows furrowed. Nora was really going through hell. Her son was kidnapped by a mercenary and her husband had been killed in front of her. It really was no wonder she was acting this way.

Piper sighed and made her way into Publick Occurrences. Nat was snoring softly, her lamp still on. Piper smiled and moved to turn it off. She closed whatever books Nat had been looking through. 

Silently, Piper made her way up to her room. It wasn't really a room, but it had more privacy than the couch downstairs. 

She took off her jacket and cap, setting them on her desk. Her thoughts drifted off as she climbed into her bed, her eyes becoming heavy. 

It seemed like things would become more exciting with a certain vault dweller around. 

* * *

Nora was awake bright and early the next morning. The sun was just beginning to crest over the stadium as she exited Nick's agency. Dogmeat trotted beside her, apparently not caring they were up and moving so early. 

Nora followed the signs to the mayor's office. She had a good feeling about talking to him. Maybe he would see all the trouble she had gone through to find Shaun and take pity on her.

Okay, that probably wouldn't happen, but a girl could dream. 

There were a few people out as Nora walked through Diamond City. They watched her with curious eyes, but thankfully, no one said anything. 

Nora took a small lift up to the mayor's office. She gazed out at Diamond City, her mouth opening slightly in awe. It was amazing how people stuck together, even in a time like this. 

Nora shook her head slightly. The lift stopped, jerking slightly. She paid it no mind as she walked into the mayor's office. 

A woman was sitting at a desk, drinking something dark. She looked over the rim of her cup as Nora walked in. 

"You're here early," the woman said. She set her cup done and interlaced her fingers on her desk. "Can I help you?"

"I need to talk to the mayor," Nora said. "It's important."

The woman sighed and closed her eyes briefly. "You're lucky. He just got in a few minutes ago. Go on in, I'll let him know you're coming. And keep that gun holstered, or we'll have problems."

Nora rolled her eyes. She wasn't planning on shooting anyone. 

She gently pushed the doors to the mayor's  _ actual _ office open. He was standing by a large window in the room, his hands behind his back. 

"Ah, it's you," the mayor said. She really couldn't remember his name. "I thought I told you to stay out of my city."

Nora crossed her arms. "You told me to find who I was looking for and leave. You said nothing about coming back."

The mayor's lip curled slightly. "What do you want?"

"I came to ask a favor," Nora said. "There was a man that lived here a while ago. Kellogg. I have reason to believe he kidnapped my son."

The mayor narrowed his eyes. "That... is certainly a tragedy. I'm sorry."

Nora nodded. "Thank you, but... I came to ask if you could help me get in his house. I need to know where he took my son."

"While I understand the situation, I cannot do that." The mayor sighed deeply. "You must understand. I value the privacy of all my residents, whether they still live here or not. I can't just give you the key to his home."

Nora took a step forward. "Please. Kellogg is a criminal. You can't seriously just overlook this."

"You aren't exactly reliable yourself," the mayor spat. He shook his head. "I'm sorry, but the answer is no. You'll have to find him some other way."

"I'm trying to right some wrongs here," Nora said, "and I'll get it done, with or without your help."

"Is that a threat?" the mayor asked. "If you're going to be that way, fine. I'll have guards posted outside Mr. Kellogg's home. Two can play at this game."

Nora's hands balled into fists. "You're going to regret that. You do  _ not _ get in the way of a mother and her son."

"Get out of my office."

With one last glare toward the mayor, Nora stormed out. The woman sitting outside his office said something, but she paid her no mind. 

Hell. If he wasn't going to help her, she would search every building in Boston until she found that scumbag. 

Nora didn't even realize how far in Diamond City she had gotten until she heard a kid shout, "You!"

Nora, still glaring, looked at a kid standing on a crate outside of Publick Occurrences. She pointed what looked like a newspaper at Nora. "Read the Publick! The Institute could be hiding anywhere..."

"Whoa. Easy, there, Nat." Piper, of all people, walked down the steps to where the kid was standing. "Hey, Blue. Who are you out to murder this early in the morning?"

Nora tried relaxing her face as best she could. "What? Nobody."

"Really?" Piper asked. She smirked and crossed her arms. "Looked to me like you were mad the dirt at your feet existed."

Nora looked down at her feet, scraping her foot against the ground. "Maybe it's just annoying me today."

"Seems like a lot of things are." Piper put a hand on Nora's good arm. "Are you all right?"

Nora nodded, putting on a fake smile for Piper. "I'm fine. I've just got a lot of things on my mind."

"I'll say!" the kid beside Piper said. "It must be hard being a newcomer and not knowing all the tricks of the Institute."

"Ignore her," Piper mumbled. "Well, I'm starving. Nat, you wanna grab something to eat before you shout more propaganda today?"

Nora smiled politely at the kid. "I don't believe we've met. I'm Nora."

She held out her hand, and the kid hesitantly took it. "I'm Nat."

Nora bowed slightly. "What a grand pleasure it is to meet you." She looked to Piper. "Is she... yours?"

Piper's brows raised for a moment. "Nat? Oh, no. She's just my sister. You really think I could have a kid her age already? I'm offended, Blue."

Nora chuckled. "You never know. I have no idea how old you could really be, considering I'm over 200 and look like I just turned twenty."

That seemed to get Nat's attention. "You're 200 years old?"

"Nora lived in a vault for a long time," Piper said. "She's  _ ancient. _ "

"What was it like?" Nat asked. "You have to tell me everything."

Nora grinned. She had always loved kids. "Oh, it was  _ awful. _ For the longest time, it was just me and a thousand guinea pigs. They turned... carnivorous."

Nat gasped. "No way."

"Way."

"All right, that's enough," Piper said. She mumbled something under her breath that sounded a lot like  _ smartass. _

"You should join us for breakfast!" Nat said as she stepped down from the crate. "Please? I wanna hear all about the vault."

"You don't have to." Piper set a hand on Nat's shoulder. "Though, I do still owe you a meal. You're free to join us if you want to."

Nora bit her cheek. She was hungry, and she still had to thank Piper for getting her out of that cell. And for helping her last night. 

Before she could give an answer, however, a gunshot rang out through the market. Nora's first instinct was to move in front of Piper and Nat, putting a hand on the gun at her hip. Dogmeat was on alert at her side. 

"I won't ask again!" a guard shouted. "Put the gun down."

There was a small crowd gathered by the market. Guards had their guns pointed at two men in the middle. 

"You're a synth!" one of the men shouted. He had a pistol aimed at the other man. "You're not my brother!"

"Please, stop saying that," the other man said. "I am and always have been your brother."

Nora glanced back at Piper. "What's happening?"

Piper shook her head. "I don't know, but it doesn't look good."

_ Someone has to intervene, _ Nora thought.  _ Someone's going to die _

Gritting her teeth, Nora made a gesture with her hand for Dogmeat to stay with Piper and Nat. Then she walked over to the crowd, calling out, "What's going on over here?"

"Stay out of this, citizen," one of the guards said. 

The man with the gun pointed it at Nora. She raised her hands defensively as Piper called out for her. "You're a synth too. You have to be. Why else would you be helping him?"

"Put the gun down," Nora said calmly. "This has to be a big misunderstanding."

The man shook his head, his hand shaking. "No. No! The Institute took my brother and replaced him with this thing!"

"That's not true!"

None of them could do anything. One of the guards had apparently had enough as they shot the man with the pistol in the head. Nora closed her eyes and flinched as blood splattered onto her face. 

It was silent save for the sound of a body falling to the ground. In the next moment, the man's brother was screaming and crying out. 

Nora opened her eyes and turned on the guard that had shot. She grabbed onto the front of their vest and got in their face. 

"What the hell were you thinking?" she yelled. "There are children here! There were better ways to handle that!"

"He was going to shoot someone!" the guard yelled back. "I was just doing my job."

"If you had waited a little longer, if you had been  _ patient, _ I could have gotten that gun from him. I was a  _ lawyer, _ for Christ's sake!"

The guard grabbed her wrist and shoved her hand down. "I don't take orders from you. Stand down."

"No, but I'll be having some words with your superiors. You just killed an innocent man in front of civilians."

Sure, Nora didn't know the laws of the land anymore. But Diamond City seemed to at least have some sense. She would've been able to get through to somebody about what just happened.

A hand was on her waist, pulling her away. Piper was saying something, her other hand hovering over Nora's face. 

Nora looked away. "I'm fine. I just can't believe they let guards shoot anyone around here."

Piper sighed. "You were right. They should've tried to handle that more peacefully."

It was nothing new, Nora supposed. That had been an issue for hundreds of years. 

Nora wiped at the blood on her face with her jacket's sleeve. "I'm sorry, I just... I was a lawyer before the bombs dropped. I hated seeing shit like that happen and the offender getting away with it."

Piper nodded. "Yeah, I heard. Come on. I can make us something inside. They'll probably close the market today."

Piper grabbed Nora's hand and led her back to Publick Occurrences, and Nora couldn't find it in herself to care. Part of her wondered why Piper was so quick to trust her after everything she had seen. 

Maybe she knew Nora wasn't a threat to her or Nat. After all, Nora only went after the guilty, and from what she could tell, neither Piper nor Nat were guilty of anything serious. 

"I'm sorry," Nora said as Piper led them all inside. 

Piper smiled at her. "Don't be. I can already tell you and I are going to get along great."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nora's Mom Instincts go from 0-100 real quick. 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! Feedback is always welcome!


	6. Breaking In

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi!! I’m back!! I’m so sorry I was gone for an eternity, but life was really rough for a while there. Between college and having zero motivation to write, I just... never got around to writing the next chapter. 
> 
> But here it is! And I should be updating regularly now, but like before, there’s no promises. Nothing is abandoned, I haven’t given up on anything. I promise :) 
> 
> Enjoy!

Nora sighed as she sat across from Piper. After eating, Piper had ushered Nat out of the living room to her little corner of their home. 

"Thank you again for the food," Nora quietly said. "You really didn't have to."

Piper waved her off. "Don't mention it. I'm sure you haven't eaten in a while anyway."

She had to agree with that. Meals didn't just come by like they used to. 

"You still have questions to ask, right?" Nora asked. "I'd be more than happy to answer them. I... I have a lot to thank you for."

Piper's head tilted to the side slightly. "Thank me for what? Being a good citizen?"

Nora snorted softly. "You've done more for me than the average citizen. Most people wouldn't look twice at someone like me."

Piper smiled and hummed. She glanced around. "I do have questions..." She nodded. "Most of them were answered from you talking to Nat, though."

"Well. Any others, feel free to ask."

"There is one that's been on my mind." Piper nodded to the gun holstered at Nora's hip. "Where did you learn to shoot like that? You'll have to teach me sometime."

"Most of it was just luck," Nora answered. "My husband was in a war, and he taught me a lot of what I know. I promise I'm not as interesting as you might think."

"I beg to differ. You're 200 years old, from a vault, made it all the way to Diamond City on your own, and took down a group of Super Mutants on your own. You're... pretty damn intriguing."

Nora smiled and rubbed the back of her neck. "I appreciate you saying that. It's been a long time since I've felt nervous receiving compliments."

She didn't even really know why she felt that way. She had never had many girl friends when she was younger, and none of them spoke to her like Piper did. Nora supposed she only felt nervous because having a friend like this was new to her. 

Well, at this point, she assumed Piper was her friend. She hadn't tried to kill her yet, at least. 

There was a slight pink to Piper's cheeks. Her smile seemed to turn almost... shy? "Do you think you'll need help out there? In the Wasteland, I mean."

Nora glanced at Dogmeat. He had helped her for the most part, but it _would_ be nice to have a conversation with something that wasn't a flying robot or a dog. "I suppose. Why? Are you offering to come with me when I leave?"

Piper shrugged. "Only if you're accepting."

"What about Nat?" Nora looked to where Nat seemed to be trying her hardest to look like she wasn't listening. "Someone has to look after the little troublemaker."

"Now that Nick is back, I can always ask him. And... Well. She does fine on her own. She's a strong kid."

"To be your sister? She's gotta be." Nora snickered when Piper shot a glare at her. "I'd love to have you along, Piper."

Piper nodded and sunk back into the chair, seemingly satisfied. "So? What's your next move?"

"The doctor wants me to get some rest, but I can't just sit idly by while some kidnapping maniac has my son. The mayor didn't want to help me, so..." Nora cringed a little, hoping Piper wouldn't alert the authorities after she said her plan aloud. "I'm going to break into Kellogg's house."

Piper's brows shot up, but other than that, she stayed quiet. She made a noise of curiosity before she nodded. "It's risky, but if it's what you have to do, then who am I to stop you? I'm not surprised the mayor refused to help you, though."

Nora huffed a laugh. "Yeah, he seems to not like either of us."

"You've got that right." Piper stood from her chair. "You know... If the Institute _is_ involved in your son's kidnapping, which I'm sure they are, you're going to need all the help you can get."

"It'd be nice to know what the Institute even is," Nora said. "I keep hearing everyone talk about them, but no one wants to answer me."

"If you knew, Blue, you'd understand why no one wants to talk about them." Piper sighed and crossed her arms. "They're lovingly nicknamed the 'Boogeyman of the Wasteland.' They're the reason so many people have gone missing throughout the years. When you get taken by the Institute, you get replaced by a synthetic look-alike."

"Like Nick?" Nora asked. 

"Sort of. As far as I know, he wasn't built to replace anyone. Only the newer models are built for that. It's... It can be real hard to see that someone you love has been replaced by a synth. That's part of the reason everyone is so distrusting these days. I hate to say it, but it'll be nearly impossible to get your son back if he was taken by the Institute. No one even knows where they are."

Nora cursed under her breath, but then she shook her head. "No, I don't care. I'm not gonna let some twisted organization take what's left of my family away from me. I'll take them down with my bare hands if I have to."

Piper smiled at her. "If only we had more people with that same mentality, maybe things wouldn't have gotten this bad."

"And you'd really be all right helping me take them down?"

Piper shrugged again. "Look, they're a threat to everyone. Sooner or later, they're going to come for me or Nat. I can't let that happen."

Nora nodded. "Consider yourself a part of my team of misfits, then."

Piper snorted. "You have other people besides you and your dog?"

"Well, not at the moment, no..."

Piper was looking at her with a strange look in her eyes. Nora almost recognized it, but by the time she was going to say something, Piper spoke up. "I'm sure you're gonna meet more people who would be more than willing to help. We're all tired of the Institute hiding in the shadows around us." 

"I sure hope so." Nora stood from the chair she had been sitting on and rolled her bad shoulder, grimacing when pain shot through her arm. "I think I'm gonna go wander around for a bit. Maybe I'll run into the mayor and he'll see he was wrong."

Piper narrowed her eyes. "Shouldn't you be resting? You came to Diamond City late last night and you were up before I was. I doubt you got much rest."

Nora waved her away. "I'll be fine. I, ah... Don't really have anywhere to rest, anyway," she finished quietly. 

Piper pointed back to the chair. "Sit."

"Piper-"

"No. Sit back down. You can sleep here until tonight. I'm assuming that's when you're going to go to Kellogg's house?"

"Yes, but-"

"Blue, sit down before I call Doctor Sun over here."

With a slight pout, Nora sat back down on the chair. "I'm doing it because I want to."

Piper smiled. "Sure. Whatever helps you sleep at night." She made her way toward the door. "I'm going to take Nat to school. I expect you to still be sitting there when I get back."

Nora gave Piper a mock salute as she sunk into the chair. Dogmeat laid at her feet, wagging his tail. 

"Suck up," Nora muttered after Piper had left. "This is your doing, isn't it, buddy? Did you convince her with your cuteness to make me stay?"

Dogmeat looked up at her with what looked like a smile. She shook her head and ran her fingers through his fur before closing her eyes. 

* * *

Piper quietly reopened the door to Publick Occurrences. She peeked her head inside before walking in. 

Nora was asleep on the chair, snoring softly. Her dog laid on the floor near her, watching Piper move. 

Piper snorted softly and leaned her shoulder against the door. "You're her protector, huh?"

The dog blinked at her but made no other movements. 

"I'm sure she appreciates having someone as loyal as you watching her back."

"His name is Dogmeat."

Piper's smile faded as she gazed at Nora. "Aren't you supposed to be sleeping?"

One of Nora's eyes opened slightly. "I'm a light sleeper. Always have been."

Piper nodded and moved away from the door. "I'll leave you be, then. I'll be upstairs if you need anything."

"It's your house." Nora shifted and looked to Piper, both eyes open now. She looked tired. "You shouldn't have to tiptoe in your own home."

"It's all right. I have a paper to write anyway, thanks to your answers."

Nora didn't look convinced, but she remained quiet. Piper could still feel her eyes on her as she walked up the stairs to her terminal. 

Piper sighed deeply and collapsed in her chair. She didn't really know why she was being so nice to Nora. They barely knew each other. For all Piper knew, Nora was planning to kill her or steal her things. Maybe Nora was playing dumb and was actually a spy for the Institute.

Okay, that was a little far-fetched. Piper could clearly see the grief in Nora's eyes when she spoke about her dead husband and missing son. The anger in her eyes when she talked about taking down the Institute. There was no way she was a spy. 

Piper glanced through her notes, but she couldn't focus. She wanted to help Nora as best she could, but there wasn't much they could do until the sun went down and the guards became laxer. 

Piper would go with her, of course. Maybe Nora had been lucky with her shots so far, but with an injured arm, it was unlikely she would be so lucky again. Especially when there would probably be guards already waiting at Kellogg's house. 

She just hoped things wouldn't escalate and they would both make it out unharmed.

* * *

"Are you sure you're ready?" Piper asked. "Can you even pick a lock with one arm?"

Nora gave her a flat look. "Who said anything about picking locks? Maybe I'll just shoot the lock."

"Yeah, because that's not suspicious at all."

Nora crossed her good arm over her stomach. "Do you have a better plan?"

Piper smirked and pulled a bobby pin out of her jacket. "Yes, and it's much better than yours."

She snickered as Nora walked off and muttered under her breath. 

She had learned to pick locks a few years ago. It came in handy when she needed to get into places that were off-limits. 

Dogmeat trotted along with them, happily wagging his tail. He kept glancing between Piper and Nora as they walked, his tongue sticking out the side of his mouth. 

"Are you prepared for what you might find in there?" Piper asked quietly as they walked up the long steps to Kellogg's home. "I'm sorry to say I don't know a whole lot about Kellogg aside from what I've heard."

Nora nodded, her brows furrowed. "I'm expecting the worst at this point. And if I don't find what I'm looking for..."

She didn't need to say it. That was the worst possible outcome, and the one that would leave her broken. Kellogg was the only lead they had at the moment, and if there was nothing inside his home to give them an idea of where to go, that was it. 

But Nora gave Piper a tight smile. "It'll be fine. I have hope."

That was a lie, and they both knew it.

There was only one guard standing by Kellogg's home. They stood straighter as Nora and Piper approached.

"The mayor said you might try coming here," they said. "I'm afraid I can't let you go inside."

Piper sighed, but Nora didn't seem bothered. "I didn't wake up from a 200-year coma just to be told I can't get into my son's kidnapper's home." She put the hand that wasn't in a sling on her hip. "You're letting us through."

The guard put a hand on their gun. "I'm just following orders, ma'am. Please, go back to your homes."

Nora took a deep breath. "Sorry, but you're not getting in my way. Dogmeat, come."

Dogmeat was alert now. He sat next to Nora, his ears perked up as he stared at the guard. 

Nora reached into her jacket just as the guard unholstered their gun. She held up a grenade and pulled the pin, tossing it a second later.

"Are you crazy?" Piper asked. She turned to Nora, her eyes wide. "You're going to get us-"

An electric shock came from the grenade, hitting the guard. They let out a pained noise and collapsed to the ground, twitching. 

"Well! That solves some of our problems." Nora started walking toward the door, glancing over her shoulder. "You coming?"

Piper blinked. "How long have you had that?"

"Not too long. Dogmeat found it earlier. I think he stole it from someone, but that's not important."

"And you couldn't have _warned me_ you were going to set off a grenade?"

Nora grinned at her. "That would just spoil the fun." She gestured to the door. "Come get this, Miss 'I Know How to Pick Locks and You Don't.'"

Piper shook her head and made her way over to Nora. She really was something else. 

It didn't take long to get the door open. The guard was still unconscious, but thankfully, they wouldn't be long. At least, Piper hoped they wouldn't take forever to search the house.

As they walked inside Kellogg's old home, Piper felt dread settling in her stomach. It was empty, devoid of anything that would make a home feel, well... like a _home._ No pictures, no decorations. Nothing. 

"This looks promising," Nora mumbled. "I guess look for anything that could tell us where Kellogg went."

Piper went to the only desk in the small home while Nora went upstairs. There were some papers scattered on the desk, but even as Piper skimmed through them, she couldn't find anything about where Kellogg had gone.

"You find anything?" Piper asked, flipping through another few pieces of paper stapled together. She glanced up from the papers when she didn't hear an answer. "Blue?"

Nora was making her way down the stairs slowly, something rectangular in her hand. It looked like a picture frame.

"Blue?" Piper asked again, softer this time. "Are you all right?"

Nora's brows were furrowed as she looked at the picture. There was such sadness in her eyes. "I didn't get to watch him grow up," she whispered. Tears appeared in her eyes. "I wasn't the one to see his first steps, to hear his first words." 

Piper hesitantly made her way over to where Nora was standing at the bottom of the stairs. The picture was one of a young boy, close to Nat's age. He looked strikingly similar to Nora. They had the same brown eyes, the same dopey grin. 

"That's your son?"

Nora nodded. "It has to be. That has to be Shaun."

Piper gently put a hand on Nora's shoulder. "We'll find him. He has to be out there somewhere, right?"

Nora closed her eyes briefly before nodding. Her smile was small, but at least it looked genuine. "Yeah. Thanks."

Nora set the picture face-down on the desk before turning toward Dogmeat. She crouched and wrapped her arms around his torso, burying her head in his fur. 

Piper felt a pang in her chest. She wished she could have done more to help, but there wasn't much to be done. She could only be there to support Nora. 

Piper went back to the desk, trying to ignore the quiet noises of sorrow coming from Nora. She imagined her newfound companion wouldn't have liked being heard crying to her dog. 

She crouched under the desk, her brows furrowing. There was a button on the side of the desk hooked up to a wire. Her curiosity peaking, she pressed it. 

The room rumbled for a moment before a wall to her left began to slide open. Metal scraped against metal as the wall opened to show a hidden room. 

Nora looked up and wiped her eyes. "What the..."

Piper stood and walked over to the entrance, her brows shooting up when she looked inside. The room was stockpiled with goods, several shelves were filled with non-perishables and purified water. There were even a few ammo crates. 

"What the hell is this?" Nora asked. "Why would he need a secret room?"

"Everyone needs their own space once in a while, I guess," Piper said. "Even kidnappers."

Nora stepped inside, looking all around. There didn't seem to be anything in the secret room, either.

That was until Dogmeat decided to sniff at a cigar on a small table in the room. He barked and headed for the front door, pawing at it.

"Looks like he found something," Piper said. "He's one hell of a dog."

Nora's smile became bigger. "He sure is." She walked over to Dogmeat. "What did you find, buddy? Are you able to follow that scent?"

Dogmeat just whined and pawed the door again. 

"I'll go let Nick know you've found something," Piper said. "Try not to come back wounded this time."

Nora glanced at Piper, her brows furrowed. "You're not coming with me?"

Piper blinked in surprise. "You- I mean, did you want me to come with you?"

Nora rubbed the back of her neck. "You don't have to. I-I just assumed, since you already helped me so much." She moved to open the front door. "It's fine. You don't have to come with me."

Piper smiled and shook her head. "It's not that I don't want to, Blue, but it _is_ kind of short notice. And besides, Nick is a detective. He might be better suited to help you out and find Kellogg."

Nora nodded. "No, no, I understand. Next time?"

"Next time, for sure. I'll go get Nick. Wait for him at the gate, all right?"

Piper refused to acknowledge the sudden onslaught of butterflies in her stomach. Nora _wanted_ her company while she looked for Kellogg. That had to mean something, right?

It probably didn't, and Piper was probably just getting her hopes up, but... 

Damn. It felt good to be wanted by someone that wasn't her family. 

Piper let herself grin as she made her way to Nick's agency. She didn't care who saw her. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you have any questions, feel free to comment or send an ask on my tumblr, spicy-dinosaur-age. 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! Feedback is always welcome!


	7. Confrontation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy!

"Looks like this is the place," Nick said as Dogmeat barked at a building they stumbled upon. "You sure you're ready for this, kid?"

Nora nodded and unholstered her pistol. "That bastard has to be in there somewhere. He's not getting out of here alive."

Nick remained quiet, and Nora could only imagine what he was thinking. The closer they had gotten to the building, the more Nora could feel her anger rising. 

The man inside this building had kidnapped her son and killed her husband. He destroyed her family. She wouldn't let him get away again.

"I don't blame you for wanting revenge," Nick said as they walked up a flight of stairs to the top of the building. "Just... be careful, all right? That's a dark path to walk down on your own."

"I'll be fine," Nora replied. "But thanks for worrying."

As they walked across the top of the building, Nora heard the sound of something coming to life. She peeked her head around a corner of a large ventilator. Sure enough, a large turret was starting to move. It seemed to be scanning the area. 

Nora readied the laser musket slung across her chest and raised it at the turret. It took one shot for the machine to explode. 

"You've got good aim, I'll give you that," Nick said. "Only problem is there seems to be more of those around here. Guess Kellogg really doesn't want anyone getting in."

"I'd like to see him try and stop me," Nora said with a smile. She continued walking to another turret. "A couple turrets aren't going to make me suddenly turn away. I've come too far."

Nick nodded. "Are you going to be all right with what has to happen? If he doesn't tell us where Shaun is-"

"He has to," Nora interrupted. "I'll get it out of him, one way or another."

"Oh, I'm sure you will. It's just that Kellogg will probably do anything to keep Shaun a secret. You have to be prepared for the worst."

Nora took out another turret. "I already am. Either way, one of us is dying today, and it sure as hell isn't going to be me. I  _ will not _ let him get away with destroying my family."

Before the bombs fell, the idea of killing someone would have made Nora throw up. Now, though... She had seen and been through too much to let it bother her. She would do whatever it took to get her son back, even if it meant tearing the world apart by her bare hands. 

She could only imagine what Nate would think of her now. What would he do if he was in her position? Would he hide with the Minutemen? Would he have wanted revenge like Nora?

It didn't matter. Nora was here, and he wasn't. And Nora had her own morals now; she couldn't worry about what could have been.

"I believe in you, kid. I've known Kellogg for a while, and I know what he's like."

Nora nodded. "I don't doubt it. I just... What would you do, if you were in my position? If he had killed your husband or wife and took your kid?"

Nick shrugged. "It's hard to say. I like to think I'd take the high road and just get my kid back, but I'm also a synth. I don't think like you do. Sure, I have my own emotions, but in the end, I'm not  _ human _ like you, kid. You humans are so unpredictable. You let your emotions guide you."

"You're right. Before the bombs fell, I would've laughed if anyone told me this is who I'd become if my family was taken from me. But now, this is my new norm."

"That's what the Wasteland does to you. You become someone you never would've thought you could become."

Nora huffed a laugh and walked over to a hatch on the roof. "That's true." She opened the hatch and readied herself to drop down into the room below. "Come on. I want to get this over with."

Nora fell several feet from the roof, grunting softly as she landed. She looked around for any dangers before gesturing for Nick to follow her down. 

He was quieter as he landed, giving her a smile as she rolled her eyes at him. 

"What's your plan?" Nick asked. "I wouldn't think Kellogg would be on the ground floor when the front door was locked."

Nora quietly began walking forward. She hadn't seen anything, but that meant nothing. "There has to be an elevator or something. Stairs, even. We'll just need to keep searching until one of us finds something."

Just as Nora turned a corner, a gun was raised at her. Her eyes widened and she reached for the pistol holstered at her hip, but she wasn't able to do anything. Nick had already raised his gun and shot the synth about to attack Nora. 

"That definitely let them know we're here," Nick said. He put a hand on her shoulder. "Lucky someone was here with you, eh?"

Nora nodded, her heart still racing. "I-I didn't even see it. Thanks."

"Don't worry about it. I'd much rather you come out of this alive than Kellogg."

Nora unholstered her pistol and flicked the safety off. She crept forward, keeping her eyes peeled for any more synths. There were only a few that she could see walking around, their own guns raised. 

Nick's shot definitely alerted them, but they didn't seem to know where Nora and Nick were. 

"There must be something wrong with my sensors," one of the synths said. It lowered its gun and looked around before turning its back to Nora. 

Nora raised her pistol and took one shot at it, hitting it in the back of the head. Sparks flew from the new hole in its head, and it twitched and shuddered before it collapsed onto its knees. It fell forward, hitting the ground face-first. 

"That'll do it," Nick mumbled. "Should only be about two left. I'll go take care of one if you take care of the other."

Nick quietly set off, leaving Nora to fend for herself with the last synth. 

It didn't take her long to find it. It was standing by what looked like an elevator, its gun raised as it looked around. 

_ Awfully convenient, _ Nora thought as she raised her pistol and took a shot at the synth.  _ The Institute is supposedly a great power in the Wasteland, and their synths can be taken down that easily? _

Something didn't feel quite right, but Nora couldn't think more on the subject. It was a little late to be having doubts about her plan of action, now.

Nora made sure her weapons were loaded while she waited for Nick. It wasn't long before he was walking toward her, looking  _ bored, _ of all things. 

"I take it everything went well?" Nora asked. "No synths trying to turn you back to their side?"

"As if they ever could," Nick replied. His metal hand pressed the button to call the elevator. "Let's get going, kid. The sooner we get out of here, the better."

Nora nodded, crossing her arms over her chest as they waited for the elevator. It dinged at them as it opened. The light inside was broken and flickering, as was expected from an elevator over two hundred years old.

After they had both stepped inside, Nora tapped the only button that wasn't destroyed or missing. She hoped whatever floor it took them to was where Kellogg was hiding. 

The elevator doors reopened a few moments later, the synthetic voice of the building telling them which floor they were on. Nora stepped out first, raising her musket. Nick stepped out behind her, his own pistol raised. 

Nora barely took three steps before another voice was coming through the intercoms near the ceiling. " _ I have to say, I'm impressed. I didn't think you would get this far. _ "

_ That has to be Kellogg, _ Nora thought bitterly as she continued forward. 

" _ Of course, you were never supposed to leave that vault alive. That was the plan. But Father seems to have different plans for you. _ "

Nora's lip curled. "Shut up."

Kellogg laughed quietly. " _ You didn't know that, did you? Your kid was perfect for what the Insitute had planned. You were supposed to die with your husband. _ "

Nora bashed the end of her musket against a synth, maybe a little too harshly. She shot at another one before it could even think to take a shot at her.

Kellogg was quiet on the intercoms for a few moments. Nora and Nick moved through the floor they were on with ease, taking out any and all synths they found lurking. Nick remained quiet as Nora let out her frustrations and anger on the synths they encountered. He just watched her back, made sure nothing could surprise them.

" _ I'm envious of you, you know. I wish my parents had fought half as hard for me as you're fighting for your son. _ "

Nora hadn't grown up in the Wasteland. Of course she'd act differently than those who had. 

_ "It won't matter. You know that, right? You were frozen for two hundred years while I wandered the Wasteland as a mercenary. You won't stand a chance. Turn back while you still can. _ "

Nora gripped her musket harder. "We'll see who comes out of here alive," she grumbled. 

"Easy, kid," Nick said. "He's just trying to get into your head."

Nora took a deep breath and nodded. She didn't want to admit that it was working. 

They went down a few flights of stairs, and distantly, Nora wondered just how big the building was. If Kellogg really wanted to, he could've just left while they were making their way through. Unless he wanted her dead just as bad as she wanted the same for him, then he would have no reason to leave. 

It just seemed strange to make them fight through waves of synths instead of waiting for them at the ground floor. 

Something was up, and Nora knew he had some trick up his sleeve to be waiting this long to end things. 

They took out the remaining synths quickly. There was a room at the end of the hallway they were in, and Nora rushed toward it. 

" _ I'm giving you one last chance, _ " came Kellogg's voice again. " _ Leave. Turn around. Forget about your son, forget about the Institute. Live your life until you grow old. _ "

"There's not a chance in hell I'm giving up!" Nora shouted at the ceiling. She stood before a locked door. "Open up."

A moment later, the sounds of the door unlocking rang through the room. The door slowly slid open, and the lights in the next room lit up as Nora entered. 

Before her stood a man with a scar over his eye.  _ Kellogg _ .

"So. You made it," Kellogg said. "Under different circumstances, I would say I'm impressed, but... Well. You being here means one of us isn't leaving this place alive."

Nora unholstered her pistol and gripped it at her side. "Where is my son?"

Kellogg smirked. "Straight to the point, eh?" He sighed. "He's not here. I hate to say it, but you came all this way to a dead end." He paused, his features softening slightly. "The Institute has him. He's gone."

Nora shook her head. "Tell me how to find him."

"I'm afraid I can't do that. The Insitute's secrets will stay with me until I die."

Nora raised her pistol. "And you know I can't let you leave here alive. Not after what you did to my family."

"You should have listened to me when I told you to turn back." Kellogg pulled a small device out of a tiny pack at his hip. "I'm sorry it had to come to this."

Kellogg pressed a button on the device, and in just a few moments, he melted out of view. 

"Nick?" Nora asked, her panic rising as she looked all around. 

"He's using a Stealth Boy," Nick said. "I'll take care of the synths. You just keep yourself safe."

Nora nodded and ducked behind a desk as the synths in the room began firing at each other. She kept an ear out for Kellogg, but realized a moment to late that he was near her.

A hand grabbed the front of her vault suit and lifted her to her feet before slamming her against the desk she had been hiding behind. Her head smacked  _ hard _ against a monitor. 

"You really should have listened to me."

A fist came from nowhere and bashed into Nora's nose, making her head snap back against the monitor once more. She hissed through her teeth as blood dripped from her nose into her mouth. 

Another fist, this time on her cheekbone, just barely missing her eye. 

Nora reached up through her bleary vision to grasp the hand gripping her vault suit. If she could just get a hold on him-

Nora, once she grabbed Kellogg's wrist, gained her footing back and shoved forward with all her weight. Kellogg stumbled back, but he was still invisible. Nora blinked several times to clear her vision, just barely seeing a faint shape coming toward her again. 

Nora ducked as Kellogg took another swing at her, and she launched herself forward, colliding with Kellogg. She wrapped her arms around his waist and tackled him to the ground. 

Just as they both hit the ground, Kellogg melted back into view. The device he had been holding earlier fell from his pocket and slid across the floor. 

Nora rolled off of him, trying to catch her breath. However, Kellogg was up again almost instantly. His knees were on either side of her hips as both his hands found her throat. 

"I didn't want it to come to this," Kellogg said, squeezing harder. "You didn't leave me a choice."

Nora gritted her teeth and gripped his wrists, digging her nails into his skin. He seemed unfazed. 

It was getting harder and harder to breathe. Nora closed her eyes and tried squirming to loosen his grip on her, but he held fast. She finally was able to bring her leg up and kick his groin, but that barely seemed to affect him. He just grunted and barely loosened his grip on her. 

Nora balled her hand into a fist brought it up to his face with all her strength. His head snapped to the side, and Nora used this small distraction to kick at him until he let go of her. She kicked him to the side and stood almost as soon as he was off of her, breathing deeply. She leaned heavily against a desk.

"You put up more of a fight than I would have thought," Kellogg said as he rubbed his face. "I underestimated you."

"I'll do anything to get my son back," Nora snapped. "Tell me how to get to the Institute."

Kellogg shook his head and raised his pistol. "Over my dead body."

Nora lunged for him just as he pulled the trigger. She grabbed onto his wrist and lifted it in the air, effectively keeping him from shooting her. 

Kellogg yanked his wrist back. He flipped his pistol so he was holding the barrel and whacked it against the side of Nora's head. 

Nora cried out and nearly fell to her knees. She raised a hand to her temple, and when she pulled her hand back, there was blood on her fingertips. 

Nora looked over her shoulder. Nick was taking down the last of the synths. She needed to hurry up and finish this. 

Her pistol lay on the floor not too far from her. If she could just-

Kellogg shot at her, and she could feel something hit her thigh. Nora nearly screamed as she stumbled back and fell on her ass. Blood came from the wound on her thigh, staining her vault suit. 

"I really didn't want to be the one to do this," Kellogg said. Nora scrambled back on her hands as he approached. "I had hoped a Courser would have taken you out, or that you would've died in that vault."

She was so close to her pistol. She could almost grab it.

Kellogg sighed. "None of that matters now. I'm sorry you won't get to see your son."

Nora grabbed her pistol just as Kellogg raised his. There was a moment of hesitation from him, just enough for Nora to raise her pistol and pull the trigger. 

Kellogg fell to his knees, a bullet wound in his head. 

Nora tried to steady her breathing as the last of the synths fell to the ground. She gritted her teeth and dropped her pistol before moving her hands to the wound on her thigh. 

"You okay, kid?" Nick asked as he walked over to her. "Shit. He did a number on you."

She could already feel one of her eyes swelling up. Dried blood crusted on her upper lip and there was still the taste of iron in her mouth. Her throat was sore. 

"I-I'll be fine," Nora said. 

Nick crouched beside her and dug through his coat for a moment. "It won't heal the wound completely," he said, "but it  _ will _ help it heal faster. You're awfully lucky the bullet went clean through."

"Lucky?" Nora shook her head. "My leg has a hole in it!"

Nick paid her no mind. He stabbed the stimpak into her thigh, right above the wound. He ignored the glare she sent his way. 

"You did it," he said instead. "Did he tell you where to find Shaun?"

Nora closed her eyes. "The Institute has him," she answered quietly. "I don't even know where to start looking."

Nick put a hand on her shoulder. "We'll find something, I'm sure. Have you tried looking on him, see if he has anything?"

Nora gave him a flat look. "Yeah, I did it right before I got shot in the leg and fell on my ass."

Nick ignored her again. He helped her stand. "I thought I saw something on him earlier, when we first arrived. Something shiny on the side of his head."

Nora's brows furrowed. She limped over to Kellogg's body, trying not to step into the puddle of blood around his head. She leaned down as best she could to get a better look, and that's when she saw it.

There was a small piece of metal attached to the side of his head. Nora tugged at it, and with a little elbow grease, it... came off. With a small, pink mass still attached to it.

Nora almost threw up in her mouth. She turned away, holding the piece of  _ brain _ far away from her. 

Nick made a noise of curiosity. "Huh. Guess that'd be it."

"What the hell are we supposed to do with this?"

Nick was quiet for a moment. "There a woman in Goodneighbor, Doctor Amari. She's been known to help with memories and other parts of the brain. If we can get it to her..."

Nora nodded. She stood shakily, wrapping the piece of brain in a cloth before putting it in the small pouch at her waist. "Is Goodneighbor far? I... I wanted to stop back in Diamond City for a bit. Get some rest, heal a bit before I come out and get my ass kicked again."

"We'll have to pass Diamond City to get there, anyway. We can stop for a bit."

Nora rubbed her face as gently as she could. She... also wanted to see Piper again. She  _ really _ didn't know why, she just... did. There was no real explanation for it. 

Or, there was, but Nora refused to acknowledge it. 

She didn't  _ like _ women like that. Whatever she was feeling, it must have just been because Piper was a friendly face, something she hadn't seen in a while. 

Yeah. That had to be it.

"If that's all we need," Nick said, bringing Nora from her thoughts, "then I'd suggest we leave. We have a lot of stuff to do before we can get your son back, but you need to rest first."

Nora nodded again. She put up no fight as Nick helped her walk. 

* * *

It didn't take them long to limp back to Diamond City. 

Well. Nora was limping. Nick hadn't had any damage done to him that he had brought up.

Dogmeat walked on Nora's other side, his ears perked up. He had been that way since they found him again. 

It was already nighttime by the time they arrived in Diamond City. There were barely any people out, which Nora supposed was a good thing. 

"Where are you headed?" Nick asked. "Do you have somewhere to sleep?"

Nora glanced at Publick Occurrences. "I can always ask Piper..."

Nick nodded. "All right. I'll leave you to it. Come see me again when you're ready to head to Goodneighbor."

Nick gently let go of her, giving her one last look before he set off to his own building. 

Nora took a deep breath and limped toward Piper's home. She hobbled her way up the steps, and she was ready to knock, but something caused her to hesitate. 

It was late, and she really didn't want to bother Piper when she likely hadn't gotten much sleep herself. And Nora being there would only cause her to worry and stay up longer. 

She was sure either Piper or Nat had heard her clomping around on their wooden porch, but... She couldn't bring herself to make her presence known. 

Nora sighed and turned around, trying to quietly get back to the road. 

Nick was gone, and the only other people in the market were two guards. They didn't even glance at her as she limped passed them. 

She had heard there was a bar in Diamond City, and while she wasn't rich by any means, she had picked up a few caps on her journey to find Kellogg. She could probably afford a few drinks.

Nora felt like she deserved it. She had just found out her son  _ was _ with the Institute, the most horrid organization in the Wasteland, if rumors were to be believed. No one knew where they were, which was just great for Nora's mental health. 

If he was with the Institute... How was she going to get him back? Was he even still alive? Had he been replaced by a synth?

Nora sighed. Now wasn't the time to think on those things. First, she would get drunk. And then, in the morning, she would make good decisions and figure out where to go from there.

_ Don't worry, Shaun, _ Nora thought as she sat in a barstool.  _ I'm coming for you. I'll get you back, no matter what it takes. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! Feedback is always welcome!


	8. Talk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm trying to get back on my schedule of updating this on Saturdays or late Fridays.
> 
> Enjoy!

Piper groaned quietly when she heard something downstairs. It was probably just Nat moving around in her sleep. 

She sat up from where she had fallen asleep at her desk again. It was already four in the morning. 

With a sigh, Piper rubbed her face and tried focusing her eyes. And then she heard it again. 

It sounded like something was scratching at the main door. Her brows furrowed as she thought about what could be at her door at four in the morning. Did a mole rat find its way into Diamond City? A stray dog, maybe?

"Piper," Nat whined. "There's someone at the door."

Piper nodded and stood, brushing off her jacket. "I'm going, I'm going."

She tried to make her way down the steps as quietly as possible. Nat had already turned her light on and was watching Piper. 

There was a whine on the other side of the door that made Piper pause. She glanced at Nat before reaching for the gun still at her hip. She kept her hand on it as she slowly opened the door. 

Piper sighed in relief and let go of her gun. "Dogmeat," she said, crouching to pat him on the head. "What are you doing here? Where's Nora?"

Dogmeat grabbed the sleeve of her jacket and tugged on her, whining again. 

Piper glanced at Nat again. "I'll be back. Don't let anyone inside."

Nat rolled her eyes, but Piper chose to ignore that. She closed the door behind her as she followed Dogmeat to wherever he was leading her. She could feel a weight on her chest the farther she went. 

"Dogmeat, where are you- oh, my God."

Piper broke into a run as soon as she saw why Dogmeat had woken her up and led her away. 

Nora was sitting in an alleyway, her knees to her chest, her head bowed. It was too dark for Piper to really see why she was just sitting in the alleyway. 

"Blue?" Piper asked as she crouched beside Nora. She put a hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay?"

She smelled like alcohol. She must have gone to the Dugout Inn when she got back to Diamond City. 

Nora slowly lifted her head. Her eyes were barely open as she rested her cheek against her knee. "Piper? What are you-" she hiccuped "-doing here?"

Oh, yeah. The alcohol was heavy on her breath. 

"Dogmeat woke me up and brought me here," Piper answered. "I assume he wouldn't do that without reason."

Nora didn't answer. She just turned her head away, resting her other cheek on her knee. 

Piper was curious about what had happened with Kellogg, but... She was more worried about Nora. 

"Come on," Piper said quietly. She pried Nora's arm open and wrapped it around her shoulder. "You can sleep at my place again."

Nora made no effort to fight her. She stood and leaned heavily against Piper, her head lolling. 

They slowly made their way to Publick Occurrences, Nora limping as she walked. She seemed to be trying to hide whatever pain she was in, but Piper could see right through it. Maybe if she was sober, she would have done a better job.

Piper helped her up the steps carefully, glancing down to see why Nora was limping so heavily. Her eyes widened when she saw the bled-through bandage on her thigh. 

Piper quickly opened the door and led Nora inside, a newfound urgency helping her nearly drag Nora through the door. 

"What did Dogmeat want?" Nat asked sleepily. Piper ignored her and helped Nora sit on the couch, moving to turn lights on when her friend was sitting. "Piper?"

"Nat, can you go get the first aid kit upstairs?" 

They had really only used it for emergencies, but Piper felt it was needed now. 

She turned to face Nora again, nearly gasping at the sight. Her head was resting against the back of the couch, her eyes closed, but Piper could still see all the wounds on her. 

There was dried, smeared blood under her nose and on her cheek. Dried blood was on the side of her face as well, starting at her temple. There was a dark bruise under her eye and bruises on her neck. 

Piper crouched in front of Nora and placed a hand against her cheek. "What the hell did he do to you?"

Nat appeared with the first aid kit a few moments later, her eyes wide. "What happened?"

Piper shook her head and dug through the kit's contents. "I don't know. She's too drunk right now to tell us anything."

Piper began removing the bandage around Nora's thigh first. She grimaced at the sight. 

It had healed a bit, probably from a stimpak, but it was still an open, bleeding wound. Piper grabbed a rag that she desperately hoped was clean and dripped some alcohol onto it. She took a deep breath before pressing it against the wound.

Nora hissed through her teeth and sat up. She moved to grab her thigh, but she paused when she saw Piper sitting in front of her. She stared for just a moment before looking away, her cheeks pink. 

"That... hurt," she mumbled. 

Piper snorted. "I'd imagine it hurts less now than when you first got it." She brought the cloth back, frowning at the blood. "Did you get shot?"

Nora nodded, though her movements were still a little uncoordinated. "Kellogg."

"Figured." Piper smirked. "Based on what you look like... I should see the other guy, right?"

Nora nodded again, her movements slow this time. "Yeah. He's dead."

Piper's smirk fell almost immediately. She looked at Nat. "Go back to sleep. I'll get her cleaned up."

Nat looked ready to protest, but... In the end, she nodded and went back to her little corner of the house. 

"What happened, Blue?" Piper asked quietly. She began wrapping Nora's leg with a clean bandage. "What did Kellogg do to you?"

Nora wouldn't look at her. Instead, she looked to where Dogmeat was sitting by the door. "Well, we found him. Had a hell of a time trying to fight our way to him. He had a bunch of Institute synths in the building."

Piper frowned. "So, he  _ was _ with the Institute."

Nora nodded and crossed her arms loosely over her chest. "I thought it would be easy to take him down. But, of course, he didn't play fair. He got the drop on me a few times." She gestured to her face. "That's how I got these."

Piper tied the bandage and picked up the cloth again. "I'm glad you made it out. Did he at least tell you where to find your son?" Nora remained silent, her fingers digging into her jacket. "Blue?"

Nora closed her eyes and let out a sharp breath. "The Institute has him."

Piper's eyes widened. That was the worst thing that could have happened. Sure, that's what Piper and Nick had thought anyway, but... For it to be true? She couldn't even begin to imagine what Nora was going through. 

Nora shook her head. "How the hell am I going to get him back, Piper? All I've heard is that the Institute is the worst group of people in the Wasteland. And that nobody even knows where they are. How the  _ fuck _ am I supposed to find Shaun now?"

Tears were beginning to make their way down Nora's cheeks. Piper's brows furrowed and she looked down. 

The truth was that she had no idea. She didn't know what to do or say to make this better.  _ Could _ she even make it better?

"I told myself I would do whatever it took to find Shaun," Nora muttered. "And that I would do whatever I could to avenge Nate. And I intend to, I just..."

She just didn't know where to go from here. She didn't need to say it.

Piper took a deep breath and brought the cloth to Nora's face. She gently wiped at the dried blood there. "Was there anything on Kellogg? Anything that would tell you where to go next?"

"There was a... a piece of his brain. Nick has it, but he said we could try Goodneighbor. Apparently, there's a doctor there that could help us."

Piper nodded. "All right, so you go to Goodneighbor. You find out what you can from the... brain... and you go from there. Take it one day at a time."

Nora hummed. "The leader of the Institute has a real ass-kicking coming when I find them."

Piper smiled and brought the cloth back.  _ There she is. _ "I believe in you. And you know I'll be by your side if you need an extra pair of hands to do the ass-kicking."

"Thank you, Pipes. I mean it. You really don't have to do any of this."

Piper tried to ignore the blush rising to her cheeks at the nickname. "Yeah, but if I don't take care of you, who will? You certainly don't do it yourself."

Nora chuckled and rubbed the back of her neck. "I'm sorry for bothering you. I'll find a place tomorrow."

"With what money?" Piper placed the bloodied cloth on the table in the middle of the room. "You're fine, Blue. I really don't mind."

A month ago, Piper would have laughed at anyone saying she would let a nearly total stranger stay in her home. Now, though... She really didn't know what it was about Nora that made her so forgiving. If it had been anyone else, she would have kicked them out already. 

Piper picked up the first aid kit and placed it on the table as well. She stood and turned off all the lights, pausing at the one next to Nora. 

She looked so tired. There were bags under her eyes that weren't just from the bruises on her face. 

"Besides everything that happened," Piper started hesitantly, "you doing okay?"

"Not really," Nora answered. "But I'll be fine. Don't worry about me."

_ Oh, I'm gonna worry either way, you dummy.  _

Piper sighed quietly and sat next to Nora on the couch. "You can talk to me if you ever need someone. I'll lend an ear."

Nora smiled at her. "Thank you. And I'll be here for you. You have anything you need to get off your chest?"

Piper thought for a moment. "Well, there is this one moocher that always comes into Diamond City bloodied and bruised. She seems to like picking fights with everyone she sees-"

Nora laughed and lightly shoved Piper's shoulder. "All right, smartass. I get it."

Piper leaned against the couch and put her ankle on one of her knees. "I'm joking, Blue. If there was really something important, I would let you know."

Nora nodded and leaned against the back of the chair as well. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to keep you up. I'm sure you're pretty tired."

"I don't mind. If you want to talk, let's talk."

And so they did. However, Nora ended up falling asleep not long into their talks about nothing. Her head rested on Piper's shoulder as she snored softly, her arms still crossed over her chest. 

Piper couldn't do anything, even if the position she was in was uncomfortable. It reminded her of having a cat sleep on you. As soon as you moved, they did too, and they wouldn't come back into your company for a while. 

Piper knew Nora would have never acted like this had she been sober. If she had even come see Piper, she would have been stubborn and done everything herself, grumbling while she did so. Then, she would have likely wished Piper a good night and gone to sleep. 

Piper sighed and looked at Nora as best she could. She couldn't help the smile that formed on her face. "What are you doing to me, Nora?"

It wasn't long before Piper had fallen asleep, too, listening to the comforting sounds of Nora sleeping beside her.

* * *

When Piper woke, the sun was streaming through the windows. Nat was still sleeping, and so was Nora. 

She took a deep breath and stretched her arms over her head. She must have moved during the night, as she was now leaning against an armrest. She moved to sit up-

And found a weight on her stomach. 

Piper was wide awake now. She looked down at herself, heat rising furiously to her cheeks when she saw the way she was entangled with Nora. 

Nora's head was resting on her stomach, just above her hips. Her body was in between Piper's legs, one of them having which wrapped around Nora's torso sometime during the night. Nora's legs dangled off the side of the couch, too long to properly stay on the couch.

It was a good thing Nora was still sound asleep. She wouldn't be able to see Piper panicking. 

Quietly and slowly, Piper started to move. It would have been really awkward for Nora to wake up now.  _ I knew I should have left when she fell asleep. _

Piper froze when Nora groaned and shifted, moving to lay on her back. Her heart thundered in her ears, but thankfully, Nora was still asleep. 

Piper let out a soft breath and continued disentangling herself. She nearly jumped with joy when she successfully freed herself without waking Nora. 

It must have been the alcohol keeping Nora asleep. She remembered Nora saying she was a light sleeper. 

Piper also nearly jumped when there was a knock at her door. She shook her head, wondering why she was so popular all of a sudden. 

Nick ended up being on the other side. He tipped his hat to her. "Morning, Piper. Is Nora here?"

Piper nodded and gestured for him to come inside. "Yeah, but she's still sleeping. I'm surprised you let her go to the Dugout by herself last night. I'm assuming that's why she's still sleeping."

Nick's head tilted to the side slightly. "What are you talking about? She told me she was going right to you."

Piper's eyes narrowed. "I only knew she was back in the city when Dogmeat came and got me. She was sitting in an alleyway when I found her."

"Oh, kid," Nick sighed. "Did she tell you what happened?"

"Yeah. That the mission didn't really go as planned?"

Nick nodded. "I didn't see much, just heard a bit of them talking. We can all talk about it when she wakes up." 

Piper set her eyes on Nora. "When she wakes up, the first thing she's going to hear is how much of an idiot she was last night."

Nick chuckled. "I knew her stubbornness would get her in trouble one day. I just didn't expect to see it so soon."

Piper originally thought Nick had taken her or just let her go to the Dugout Inn by herself. But to hear she had lied to Nick just to go there on her own? 

That wasn't the way things worked. She would need to learn to trust that Piper and Nick only wanted what was best for her, just like friends should. 

If she didn't, she would never make it far in the Wasteland.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nora? Not telling the truth because she felt guilty? It's more likely than you think.
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! Feedback is always welcome!


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